S^"  PRINCETON,    N.  J. 


7r  PRINCETON.    N.    T.  <Jf 


Purchased    by  the 
Mrs.    Robert   Lenox    Kennedy  Church    History   Fund, 

BR  555  .M3  S6  1899  i 

smith,  C.  Ernest  1856-1939.  I 

Religion  under  the  barons  of 

Baltimore 


RELIGION 

UNDER 

THE  BARONS  OF  BALTIMORE. 


BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR 

THE   OI^D   CHURCH    IN    THE    NEW    I^AND. 
Crown  8vo,  $1.25.     Second  Edition. 

IN    THE    HOUSEHOI.D   OK    FAITH. 
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CAI,I,  To  CONFIRMATION.  A  Manual  of 
Instruction  for  Candidates.  Paper,  12  cts. 
net  :    cloth.  25  cts.     4th  FMition  Revised. 

IvOXOMANS,  Grekn  &  Co.,  New  York. 

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1 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^m 

i 

I  >-%.,mm 

M.)NtMKNT    M\I<KIN(,    Till:    SITK    WlllCUi:    Till:    IIRST     ADVKXTrRERS    SKTTLEn 
ON     rilK    MAIXLANI). 

Ste  raRc   v)7. 


RELIGION 

UNDER 

THE  BARONS  OF  BALTIMORE 


BEING   A   SKETCH    OF   ECCLESIASTICAL  AFFAIRS 

FROM  THE 

Founding  of  the  Maryland  Colony  in  1634  to  the  formal  establishment  of  the 

Church  of  England  in  1692,  with  special  reference  to  the  claim  that  Maryland 

was  founded  by  Roman  Catholics  as  the  seed  plot  of  Religious  Liberty. 


C.  ERNEST 'smith,  D.  D., 

KECTOR   OF   THE   CHURCH   OF   ST.  MICHAEL   AND   ALL   ANGELS, 

BALTIMORE,    MARYLAND. 

AUTHOR   OF    "the   OLD   CHURCH   IN   THE   NEW   LAND," 

'•IN   THE   HOUSEHOLD   OF   FAITH,"    ETC. 


BAI.TIMORK. 

E.  ALIvEN   IvYCETT. 
1899. 


Copyright,  1899, 

BY 

E.  AI,I,EN  I^YCETT. 


PRESS     OF     H.     L.     WASHBURN     &     CO 
BkLTIMORC,     MD. 


TO  THE 

Congregation 

OF    THE 

Church  of  St.  Michael  and  Ali.  AngeivS, 
bai.timore, 

WHO   ARE    ALREADY   FAMILIAR    WITH    MANY    OF    THE    STATE- 
MENTS MADE  IN   ITS  PAGES,   THIS   BOOK  IS  AFFEC- 
TIONATELY  DEDICATED    BY  THE   AUTHOR, 
WHO  THINKS  IT  NO  SLIGHT  PRIVI- 
LEGE TO   BE  THEIR 
RECTOR. 


PREFACE. 

Students  are  well  aware  that  much  which  passes 
current  in  Maryland  for  reliable  history,  is  utterly 
unworthy  of  credit.  This  is  especially  the  case 
with  Maryland's  ecclesiastical  history.  But  this 
fact  need  occasion  little  or  no  surprise.  That  error 
should  have  been  very  largely  incorporated  in 
the  story  of  Maryland's  past,  was  as  natural  and 
inevitable  as  are  the  storms  of  March  or  the  short- 
ening of  the  days  in  winter,  seeing  that  imagina- 
tion had  been  called  upon  to  fill  up  many  and 
large  gaps  in  her  records. 

Now,  however,  it  is  altogether  different.  In- 
creased historical  research  ;  the  publication  of  the 
Maryland  Archives ;  above  all,  the  recovery  and 
publication  of  the  Calvert  Papers  after  many  years 
disappearance,  have  solved  questions  once  apparent- 
ly insoluble,  removed  difficulties  long  considered 
insuperable,  and  reconciled  seemingly  hopeless 
contradictions.  Happily,  through  the  patriotic 
zeal  of  the  Maryland  Historical  Society,  there  is 
nowadays  such  a  wealth  of  material  at  our  com- 
mand, that  not  only  is  a  hearty  tribute  of  praise 
due   the  Society  from   every  lover  of   truth,   but 


viii  PREFACE 

there  is  due  also  the  frank  acknowledgement  that 
its  successful  labors  have  rendered  comparatively 
eas)'  the  task  of  the  future  historian  of  Mar^-land. 
A  very  fascinating  subject  for  stud}"  is  the  ac- 
count of  the  work  of  Maryland's  Historical  Society-, 
apart  altogether  from  its  splendid  results.  In  fact, 
second  onh-  in  interest  to  the  stor\-  they  enshrine, 
is  the  histor\-  of  the  precious  documents  them- 
selves. Strange  and  romantic  have  been  the  ways 
in  which  these  documents  have  been  rescued  from 
oblivion.  Not  more  wonderfully  indeed  was  the 
famous  Old  Testament  manuscript  Aleph  saved  by 
Constantine  Tischendorif,  when  the  monks  of  the 
monastery  in  which  he  was  tarr>dng  for  the  night 
had  already  laid  it  aside  for  the  kindling  of  the 
next  day's  fire,  than  have  some  of  Maryland's  lit- 
erar\-  treasures  escaped  entire  destruction.  As 
recently  as  the  year  1894  the  Society  acquired, 
from  a  most  unexpected  source,  several  documents 
which  constitute  a  very  valuable  addition  to  its 
collection.  The  stor}-  of  the  acquisition  of  these 
papers  is  thus  told  b\-  a  member  of  the  Society  : 
''It  was  in  Ma)-,  1894,  that  I  received  a  letter  from 
Mr.  John  Roland  Phillips,  dated  Lincoln,  Nebras- 
ka, advising  me  that  he  had  in  his  possession 
several    old    and    rare    documents    relating    to   the 


PREFACE  IX 

earliest  settlement  of  Maryland,  which  he  would 
be  glad  to  dispose  of. 

"  A  correspondence  ensued  which  developed  the 
fact  that  the  papers  came  to  Mr.  Phillips'  posses- 
sion from  his  father,  who  died  in  1887. 

*'  The  elder  Phillips  was  the  author  of  a  work 
entitled.  Memoirs  of  the  Civil  War  in  Wales  and 
the  Marches^  1642-164^^  by  John  Roland  Phillips, 
of  Lincoln's  Inn,  Barrister-at-Law,  in  two  volumes, 
London :   Longmans,  Green  &  Co.,  1874. 

"  In  the  preparation  of  this  work  the  author 
collected  a  considerable  mass  of  papers  bearing  on 
the  subject  of  his  investigations,  among  which 
these  appear  to  have  been  preserved  because  of 
their  particularly  interesting  character.  Whence 
the  papers  were  obtained  b)^  his  father  the  present 
Mr.  Phillips  does  not  know.  They  were,  at  ni)- 
request,  sent  to  us  for  examination,  and  their  value 
as  genuine  originals  being  readily  recognized  by 
our  experts,  they  were  purchased  by  the  Society 
and  form  a  most  interesting  series,  illustrating 
transactions  immediately  preceding  the  embarka- 
tion from  London,  the  events  of  the  voyage  over, 
and  the  occurrences  of  the  short  interval  between 
the  arrival  in  Maryland  and  the  despatch  of  the 
ship  ^  Ark^  on  its  retiu'n  to  London." 


X  PREFACE 

Thus  documents  of  the  ver}'  highest  importance 
to  the  historian  of  Maryland,  "  which  have  been 
for  more  than  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  without 
the  care  of  an  official  guardian,"  have  happily  been 
preserved.  What  hopes  may  not  be  founded  on 
such  a  discovery  as  this?  Other  literary  treasures 
may  yet  be  forthcoming.  Two  large  chests  marked 
Calvert  Papers  seen  in  the  British  Museum  in 
1839,  could  not  be  foimd  twenty  years  later.  Pro- 
babh'  they  were  there  only  temporarily,  perhaps 
offered  unsuccessful h'  for  sale.  But  if  so,  where 
was  their  next  resting  place  ?  Was  it  at  the  coun- 
try seat,  near  Windsor,  of  a  descendant  of  the 
Calverts,  where  the  recovered  papers  were  actually 
found,  and  where  a  tradition  still  lingers  that  a 
chest  full  of  similar  papers  had  been  given  to  the 
gardener  to  be  buried?  Wlio  shall  venture  to 
decide  ?  Meanwhile,  although  some  may  still  live 
in  hope  of  seeing  that  lost  chest  at  a  future  da>-, 
most  of  us  will  be  thankful  for  our  present  posses- 
sions, and  seek  to  learn  the  lessons  they  teach. 

It  will,  perhaps,  be  seen  that  to  give  an  account 
of  religion  in  the  province  of  Maryland  in  its  early 
days  is  a  task  attended  with  some  special  difficul- 
ties and  no  little  responsibility,  in  that  it  involves 
the  rejection  of  views  as  entirelv  worthless,  which 


PREFACE  XI 

have  both  enjoyed  the  support  of  great  names,  and 
attained  something  like  universal  assent.  This  is 
necessarily  an  ungrateful  duty.  Beliefs  which 
have  become  entwined  with  the  heart's  affections, 
even  when  destitute  of  all  warrant,  cannot  but  be 
respected.  To  any  one,  however,  who  may  be 
tempted  to  resent  the  publication  of  views  distaste- 
ful to  him,  I  would  say  that  they  have  only  been 
published  in  the  full  belief  that  the  facts  herein 
recorded  are  true,  and  deserve  to  be  fully  known. 
And  I  would  therefore  suggest  that  ere  such  an 
one  makes  a  way  for  his  indignation,  it  would  be 
well  for  him  to  examine  the  records  to  see  whether 
these  distasteful  views  are  or  are  not  well  founded. 
If  he  will  do  this,  I  shall  be  fully  satisfied  ;  for  I  am 
sanguine  enough  to  believe  that  a  thorough  exam- 
ination, and  an  honest  interpretation  of  the  records, 
will  lead  him  to  make  the  frank  confession  :  / 
have  not  conquered  the  evidence^  but  the  evidence 
has  conquered  me. 

We  may  not  willingly  dwell  in  darkness. 
Our  fathers  thought  Galileo  guilty  of  impiety  in 
maintaining  the  true  theory  of  the  universe.  The}- 
likewise  believed  in  ghosts  and  burned  witches. 
We  neither  burn  witches,  believe  in  ghosts,  nor 
maintain   that  the  earth  stands  still  in  the   midst 


Xll  PREFACE 

of  the  heavens.  We  walk  in  the  light,  and  must 
prove  ourselves  worthy  of  the  light.  And  I  trust 
that  the  time  is  not  far  distant  when  reputable 
citizens  will  be  found  no  more  willing  to  talk 
about  Maryland  as  ha\dng  been  founded  as  a  refuge 
for  men  persecuted  for  conscience  sake,  and  as  the 
seed-plot  of  religious  liberty  than  they  are  now  to 
plead  for  the  burning  at  the  stake  of  some  poor, 
harmless  old  woman  as  a  witch. 

In  m}'  endeavors  to  further  the  cause  of  truth 
I  am  sure  of  the  approval  of  the  noble-minded 
everywhere,  whatever  their  sentiments  ma}'  be, 
but  I  trust  that  no  just  fault  can  be  found  by  any 
with  the  spirit  in  which  I  have  discharged  my 
task. 


TITLES  OF  CHAPTERS. 


Preface. 
I.     MaryIvAnd's  Legendary  Origin.     ...  i 

II.    Sir  George  Cai^vert  at  the  Court  of 

King  James  I.  .    .    .       19 

III.  The  Charter  of  Avai^on 37 

IV.  Lord  Bai^timore  (Sir  George  Cai^vert) 

IN  NEWF0UND1.AND 58 

V.     Lord  Bai^timore  in  Virginia 77 

VI.    The  Death  of  Lord  Bai^timore.    ...  95 

VII.    The  Charter  of  Maryi^and 113 

VIII.    The  Adventurers,  and  How  they'  were 

Gathered  Together 129 

IX.    The  Journey  of  the  Adventurers  to 

Maryxand,  and  their  Arrivai,.   .  150 

X.    Founding  a  City  to  dwei^i.  in 171 

XI.    Sheep  without  a  Shepherd— The  Be- 
ginnings OF  THE  MaRYI^AND  ChURCH  .  I9 

XII.    "Whii,e   the  Government  is    Catho- 

1.1QUE." 209 

XIII.  Working  the  Legisi^ature 225 

XIV.  The  Appeai,  to  the  Lord  Proprietary  244 
XV.    Batti^es  with  the  Jesuits— The  Defeat 

OF  Lord  Bai^timore 258 

XVI.    Gathering  Ci^ouds 276 

XVII.    The  Storm 294 

XVIII.    A  New  Departure — The  Programme.  .  309 

XIX.      MARYI.AND  under   PURITAN  RUI^E-     .     .     .  329 

XX.    Lord  Bai^timore  enjoys  his  own  again.  348 
XXI.    The  Church  of  Engi^and  Estabwshed 

AND  Endowed t, 


CHAPTER  I. 
MARYLAND'S  LEGENDARY  ORIGIN. 

"  But  faith,  fanatic  faith,  once  wedded  fast 
To  some  dear  falsehood,  hugs  it  to  the  last." 

— Moore. 

It  has  long  been  claimed  for  Maryland  that  she 
owes  her  existence  to  the  desire  to  found  a  colony 
where  religious  liberty,  sternly  proscribed  and  lying 
under  a  ban  elsev/here,  should  find,  in  at  least  one 
place  in  all  the  world,  protection  and  a  home. 
Nothing  less  than  this,  we  are  told,  was  the  purpose 
of  Sir  George  Calvert,  first  Baron  of  Baltimore,  as 
he  sought  and  obtained  from  King  Charles  the  First 
his  Charter  of  Maryland.  Although  stricken  down 
himself  by  the  hand  of  death  ere  he  could  fulfil  his 
splendid  purpose,  that  purpose  still  lived  on,  destin- 
ed to  a  glorious  fulfilment.  Its  perfect  accomplish- 
ment, we  are  assured,  was  the  one  aim  of  the  men 
who,  in  the  winter  of  1633-34,  under  the  leadership 
of  Leonard  Calvert,  crossed  the  Atlantic  and 
founded  the  Province  of  Maryland  ;  the  one  desire 
that  influenced  them  to  leave  home  and  friends, 
and  to  brave  the  perils  of  the  deep  and  the  hard- 


2  MARYLAND'S   LEGENDARY   ORIGIN. 

ships  of  earh-  colonial  life.  From  this  point  of 
view,  these  men  are  certain!}-  entitled  to  be 
regarded  as  pilgrims  seeking  a  countr\'  where,  in 
all  questions  of  conscience,  Ephraim  should  no 
more  \ex  Judah,  nor  Judah  vex  Ephraim,  but 
where  peace  and  harmony  should  bear  unbroken 
rule  ;  pilgrims,  moreover,  who  were  solely  intent 
upon  building  up  in  the  wilderness  a  home  for 
religious  freedom,  and  whose  watchword  was, 
''  Liberty  to  worship  (jod."  That  this  was  the 
character  of  their  mission,  seemed  even  to  be 
proclaimed  by  the  \ery  names  of  the  fragile  boats 
in  which  they  sailed:  the  Ark\  and  the  Dove! 
What  else  could  such  names  signif}-,  than  that  the 
deluge  was  everywhere,  and  that  the  \-o\agers  were 
seeking  a  place  where,  safe  from  the  raging  waters, 
the\'  might,  in  peace  and  safet}-,  after  the  manner 
of  their  fathers  and  the  dictates  of  their  consciences, 
offer  up  the  sacrifice  of  prayer  and  praise  to  God 
continually  ? 

Thus  considered,  the  expedition  of  the  ''  pilgrims" 
is  full  of  pathetic  interest.  Nor  is  it  without  its 
own  striking  parallel  in  histor\-.  It  is,  in  fact, 
singularh-  like  the  traditional  account  which 
relates  how  Joseph  of  Arimathea,  and  his  twelve 
companions,  fleeing  from  the  intolerable  bigotry  of 


MARYLAND'S    LEGENDARY   ORIGIN.  3 

their  countrymen,  came  to  Britain,  bearing-  the 
Holy  Grail  and  the  tidings  of  the  Gospel.  Like 
that,  too,  the  story  of  the  Maryland  pilgrimage  is 
beautiful.  It  is  rich  also  in  loft}'  purposes  and 
spiritual  aims  ;  in  steadfastness  of  heart  and  a  ready 
willingness  to  suffer  for  the  Truth's  sake.  And  that 
in  Maryland  many  are  sincerely  attached  to  it  will 
create  no  astonishment.  Maryland,  by  means  of  it, 
has  a  glory  all  her  own.  Here  is  the  beginning  of 
her  greatness,  the  source  of  her  power.  Here  the 
proof  that  starting  with  a  distinctly  religious 
motive,  she  was  "  the  brightest  gem  in  the 
American  cluster  of  provinces  or  states,"  justly 
entitled  in  consequence  to  a  proud  pre-eminence 
among  them  all.  Here  is  the  authority  for  the 
lofty  claim  that  her  foundation  marks  the  epoch 
that  gave  birth  to  the  idea  of  absolute  religious 
liberty,  the  first  step  in  that  direction  on  this 
continent,  aye,  the  first  in  the  world.  ^  Sureh'  no 
greater  distinction  than  this  could  have  been  hers. 

'  McSherry,  History  of  Maryland.  Page  24.  McMahon  P.  193. 
The  statement  in  the  text  is  made  under  the  belief  that  the  Act 
of  Toleration,  (see  chapter  xviii)  passed  in  1649  by  the  Maryland 
House  of  Assembly,  was  the  first  of  its  kind.  As  a  matter  of 
fact  this  statute  was  not  passed  until  thirteen  years  after  Roger 
Williams  and  others  who  had  suffered  persecution  in  Massa- 
chusetts, had  established  at  Providence,  as  Arnold  says,  "A 
pure  Democracy,  which  for  the   first  time  .guarded  jealously 


4  MARYLAND'S   LEGENDARY   ORIGIN. 

Had  not  religious  liberty  on  her  soil  "  obtained  a 
home,  its  only  home  in  the  wide  world?"  ^  If  this 
be  true,  then  let  lis  indeed  salute  Maryland,  and 
exclaim,  All  hail  to  Maryland,  the  first  of  all  lands 
to  proclaim  that  a  man's  faith  is  a  matter  between 
himself  and  his  Maker. 

But  should  we  bethink  ourselves  to  ask  from 
what  persecutions  these  "  pilgrims "  were  fleeing, 
whose  flight  had  so  glorious  a  termination,  we  shall 
be  answered,  from  the  fines,  the  confiscations,  and 
the  imprisonments  which  were  then  the  common 
portion  of  the  English  Roman  Catholics.  Now 
that  the  English  Romanists  of  that  day  did  suffer 
"  the  odium  and  disabilities  of  a  political  ostracism 
and  some  of  the  rigors  of  a  downright  persecution,"  '^ 
must  be  confessed ;  though  at  the  time  of  the 
sailing  of  the  Ark  and  the  Dove^  their  lot,  it  must 
also  be  acknowledged,  was  so  much  brighter  than 

the  right  of  conscience  by  ignoring  any  power  in  the  body 
politic  to  interfere  with  those  matters  that  alone  concern  man 
and  his  Maker."  It  was  not,  however,  until  March  14,  1643, 
but  yet  six  years  before  the  Maryland  Act  of  Toleration  was 
passed,  that  the  "  Patent  for  Providence  Plantations"  was 
issued,  prior  to  which  time  the  legislation  of  the  colony  was 
without  royal  sanction.  See  "Patent  for  Providence  Planta- 
tion," and  foot  note  to  the  same,  in  "Charters  and  Constitu- 
tions," vol.  ii,  p.  1594. 

^  Bancroft,  vol.  i,  chapter  vii,  page  247 — loth  edition. 

=*  Md.  Hist.  Society  Pamphlet. 


it  had  been  for  many  years,  that  it  really  seemed  as 
if  the  long  day  of  tribulation  had  for  ever  passed 
away.  Still,  "  a  code  which  embodied  the  howl  of 
terror,  indignation  and  vengeance,  raised  throughout 
England  by  the  recollections  of  Philip  and  Mary,  of 
Alva  and  Parma,  of  St.  Bartholomew's,  of  the 
Inquisition,  the  x\nnada,  and  the  Ckinpowder  Plot, 
was  the  stern  law  of  the  realm."  ^ 

Yet  a  careful  and  impartial  inquiry  into  the 
origin  of  the  expedition  which  Leonard  Calvert  led 
to  Maryland,  will  show  that  neither  the  odium  and 
the  disabilities  of  political  ostracism,  nor  even  the 
rigors  of  religious  persecution,  had  anything  what- 
ever to  do  with  that  expedition.  vSufferings  for 
conscience'  sake  contributed  nothing  to  the  issue 
either  immediately  or  remotely.  Had  England 
been  as  much  a  stronghold  of  the  Roman  Church 
as  is  Spain  today  the  Calvert  expedition  would 
have  sailed  to  Maryland.  Although  this  is  happily 
nowadays  a  matter  quite  capable  of  satisfactory 
proof,  there  was  a  time  when  it  was  not  so  easy  to 
satisfy  the  sceptical,  with  the  result  that  men  came 
to    accept    without    question    a    wholly    untenable 

*  Oration  of  General  Charles  E.  Phelps,  page  30.  Pro- 
ceedings of  the  Maryland  Historical  Society  in  connection  with 
the  150th  afiniversary  of  the  settlement  of  Baltiinore,  F.  P.  No. 
15.     See  also  Donaldson,  pamphlet  of  Md.  Hist.  vSoc,  page  14. 


6  MARYLAND'S    LEGENDARY   ORIGIN. 

theory  of  Maryland's  origin  ;  a  mere  legendary  tale 
at  the  best.  And  so  it  has  come  to  pass,  that 
Leonard  Calvert  and  his  fellow  travelers  appear  in 
histor}'  as  a  band  of  heroes  bearing  freedom  to 
man's  mind,  and  their  landing  place  in  Maryland, 
as  the  most  sacred  spot  on  this  continent,  if  not  in 
all  the  world. 

By  those  who  accept  this  legendary  account  as  a 
true  and  faithful  description  of  the  beginnings  of 
Maryland,  Sir  George  Calvert,  the  originator  of  the 
enterprise,  is  regarded  as  a  man  sent  from  God,  as 
almost  another  Elijah  or  John  the  Baptist.  And 
indeed  if  their  judginent  is  just,  it  were  a  crime  to 
regard  him  otherwise.  To  but  few  has  it  been 
permitted  to  be  benefactors  of  all  Christendom. 
Yet  it  is  nothing  less  than  this  which  is  claimed  on 
Cahert's  behalf.  Of  him  it  is  written,  that  his 
mission  was  to  open  the  eyes  of  men  to  "  the 
enormity  of  persecuting  men  for  their  religious 
tenets  ;"  and  that  "  it  seemed  to  be  sent  to  him  like 
an  inspiration,  that  this  great  evil,  this  perennial 
scourge  of  Christendom,  could  and  should  be 
redressed  at  once  and  forever."'^  To  accomplish 
this,  he  ''  discarded,  so  we  are  assured,  the  emolu- 
ments   of   earth   for    the    rewards    of   heaven,   and 

'  Ihiiied  States  Catholic  Magazifig,  April  1842. 


MARYLAND'S    LEGENDARY    ORIGIN.  7 

exclianged  the  bright  hopes  of  the  present  for  the 
unfading  certainties  of  the  future.'"'  "He  was 
the  first,"  wrote  Bancroft  in  language  afterwards 
repudiated  by  him,  though  frequently  quoted  since 
as  if  it  had  never  been  withdrawn,  "  in  the  history 
of  the  Christian  world  to  seek  for  religious  security 
and  peace,  by  the  practice  of  justice,  and  not  by  the 
exercise  of  power ;  to  plan  the  establishment  of 
popular  institutions  with  the  enjoyment  of  liberty 
of  conscience."''  "It  is,"  says  Cardinal  Gibbons, 
"  with  no  small  degree  of  satisfaction,  that  I  point 
to  the  State  of  Maryland  as  the  cradle  of  civil  and 
and  religious  liberty,  and  the  land  of  the  sanctuar}-. 
Of  the  thirteen  original  American  Colonies,  Mary- 

^  The  United  States  Catholic  Magazine^  April  1842. 

^  Bancroft,  voL  i,  chapter  vii,  page  244,  loth  edition.  Surely 
it  is  an  nnfortnuate  cause  which  needs  the  support  of  words 
repudiated  by  their  author,  (page  158,  author's  last  revision,) 
and  that  author  George  Bancroft,  a  historian  of  whom  it  has 
been  said  that  his  ' '  usual  trespasses  ' '  are  ' '  mis-statements, 
omission,  garbling,  perversion  and  suppression."  (See  Criti- 
cal and  Political  Essays,  Wallis,  page  46,  vol.  ii. )  Indeed, 
were  it  not  for  the  prodigal  use  made  of  Mr.  Bancroft's  opinions, 
I  should  apologise  for  quoting  him  at  all,  for  of  all  historians 
he  is  the  worst.  Concerning  Maryland  in  particular  it  is  said 
"  that  Mr.  Bancroft  seems  to  have  dedicated  himself  with  par- 
ticular solicitude  to  the  falsification  of  her  historical  record. " 
(Wallis,  Critical  and  Political  Essays,  vol.  ii,  page  55.)  And 
yet  this  is  the  historian  whose  self-repudiated  words  are 
quoted  again  and  again  as  an  authority.  See  especially  Cardi_ 
nai  Gibbons,  Faith  of  Our  Fathers,  p.  230. 


8  maryi^and's  legendary  origin. 

land  was  the  only  one  that  was  settled  by  Catholics. 
She  was  also  the  only  one  that  spread  aloft  over 
her  fair  lands  the  banner  of  liberty  of  conscience, 
and  that  invited  the  oppressed  of  other  colonies  to 
seek  an  asylum  beneath  its  shadow."^ 

Nor  are  these  merely  the  opinions  of  men 
interested  in  Maryland,  either  as  her  sons  or  her 
historians.  With  remarkable  unanimity  they  are 
shared  by  other  men,  dwelling  beyond  her  borders 
and  having  no  special  interest  in  her  histor>\ 
George  W.  Childs,  one  of  the  most  generous  and 
enlightened  of  Churchmen  whom  recent  years  have 
seen,  assures  us  that  "  Calvert  and  his  companions 
should  be  at  least  as  widely  renowned  as  the  New 
England  Pilgrims,  for  their  Mar^^land  colony  was 
freer  than  Massachusetts  Bay.  When  Calvert 
planted  Maryland,  his  infant  state  stood  first  and 
far  in  advance  of  all  the  world.  It  was  built  upon 
the  immutable  principles  of  human  freedom — the 
honest  heritage  of  all  men,  just  law,  equality  before 
the  law,  no  restraint  upon  the  conscience,  no 
disability  on  account  of  religious  faith,  and  absolute 
self-government."  '*  "  Maryland,"  says  John  Green- 
leaf  Whittier,  "  like  Pennsylvania,  has  reason  to  be 

*  Faith  of  Our  Fathers,  page  272,  edition  of  1893. 

•  Baltimore  Sun,  May  20th,  1897. 


MARYLAND'S    LEGENDARY   ORIGIN.  9 

proud  of  Calvert  and  her  first  emigrants  who  built 
up  their  state  on  the  sure  foundation  of  religious 
freedom."  ^'^  Benjamin  F.  Butler  writes,  "No 
character  in  our  colonial  history  has,  in  my  maturer 
years,  more  attracted  my  admiration,  than  that  of 
Lord  Baltimore.  With  far-reaching  sagacity,  and 
out-growing  the  general  intelligence  of  his  time,  he 
was  broad-minded  enough  to  establish  for  the  first 
time  in  America,  a  colony  accompanied  by  absolute 
religious  toleration."  " 

Now  next  to  the  question  how  or  when  it  was 
first  proclaimed  that  the  true  genesis  of  Maryland 
lay  in  the  desire  to  found  a  refuge  from  the  storms 
of  persecution,  it  would  prove  a  most  interesting 
subject  of  inquiry,  under  what  circumstances  Sir 
George  Calvert  made  his  debut  as  the  advocate  of 
the  doctrine  of  religious  toleration.  For  in  his  day 
the  duty  of  tolerating  religious  error  was  a  part  of 
no  man's  creed.  No  preacher  of  true  toleration  had 
yet  arisen  among  men.  Nor  was  the  world  ready 
for  such  a  prophet.  "  Neither  the  Church  of 
England,  the  Puritans,  nor  the  (Roman)  Catholics 
believed  in  religious  liberty  at  that  time.  Each 
believed  in  a  state  church  established  by  law, 
and  each  was  intent  on  establishing  its  own  faith  to 

i"  Ibid.        "  Ibid. 


lO  MARYLAND'S    LEGENDARY    ORIGIN. 

the  exclusion  of  every  other."  '^  Speaking  of  the 
religious  disputants  of  Henry  the  Eighth's  time, 
James  Anthony  Fronde  says :  They  "  clamored 
against  persecution,  not  because  it  was  persecution, 
but  because  truth  was  perseciited  by  falsehood  ;  and, 
however  furiously  the  hostile  factions  exclaimed 
each  that  the  truth  was  with  them  and  the  falsehood 
with  their  enemies,  neither  the  one  nor  the  other 
disputed  the  obligation  of  the  ruling  powers  to 
support  the  truth  in  itself."  '"^  It  was  precisely  the 
same  in  James  the  First's  time.  Then,  too,  men 
considered  it  the  business  of  the  government  to 
prescribe  a  religion  for  its  subjects.  They  also 
held  that  the  more  perfect  the  government,  the 
more  conscientious!}'  and  effectually  it  would  do 
this.  Whatever  a  man's  private  opinions  might 
be,  he  had  no  right  outwardly  and  publicly  to 
assert  them,  and  should  he  be  so  unreasonable  as 
to  do  so,  he  deser\'ed  to  be  se\'erely  punished. 
Accordingly,  Sir  George  Calvert  himself,  when 
Secretary  of  State,  Roman  Catholic  though  he 
was,  made  no  scruple  of  sending  even  his  own 
co-religionists  to  prison,  because  they  either  could 

'■■^  Fisher,  voL  ii,  page  156.  Men,  Women  arid  Manners  in 
Colonial  Times. 

'^  Froude,  History  of  England,  Henry  the  Eighth,  voL  ii, 
chapter  12,  page  480. 


MARYLAND'S  LEGENDARY  ORIGIN.      II 

not  or  would  not  bow  down  and  worship  in  what 
was  to  them  the  House  of  Rimnion,  with  the  same 
facility  with  which  he  himself  did.^^ 

Sir  George  Calvert's  appearance  as  a  1 7th  Century 
preacher  of  religious  toleration  can  therefore  only 
be  regarded  as  a  pleasant  fiction.  It  is  a  fiction, 
however,  which  has  proved  an  unexpected  piece  of 
good  fortune  to  his  co-religionists.  His  glorious 
deeds  have  shed  lustre  on  them.  By  what  process, 
indeed,  our  Roman  Catholic  brethren  have  come  to 
be  regarded  as,  so  to  speak,  residuary  legatees  in 
any  glory  rightly  pertaining  to  the  hero  is  not 
manifest.  For  to  the  uninitiated  they  would  seem 
to  have  been  as  innocent  of  any  complicity  in  his 
doings,  as  was  the  Grand  Llama  of  Thibet  or  the 
Mikado  of  Japan.  Yet  a  traditional  belief  in  his 
great  services  to  humanity,  has  wrought  their 
Church  lasting  good.  Probably  nowhere  else  in 
the  world  among  English  speaking  people,  is  the 
Roman  Church  more  kindly  thought  of  than  she 
is  in  Maryland.  Maryland  owes  much  to  her,  so 
it  is  thought,  and  she  has  her  reward. 

'*  V/ilhelm.  Maryland  Historical  Society,  Fund  Publication, 
No.  19,  page  77.  "The  Secretary  was  named  a  special 
commissioner  by  the  King  to  arrest  and  punish  Seminary 
Priests  and  other  recusant  clergy  remaining  in  the  country 
contrary  to  the  law." 


12  MARYLAND'S    LEGENDARY    ORIGIN. 

But  even  vsome  Anglican  Churchmen  have  been 
quite  as  zealous  in  contending  for  the  theory  of  Sir 
George  Calvert's  services  to  religion  as  have  the 
Roman  Catholics  themselves.  One  has  only  to 
consult  the  pages  of  Wilberforce,  Anderson,  Hawks 
and  other  church  writers  to  be  fully  assured  of 
this.  When  exactly  fift}'  years  ago  Josiah  Polk, 
a  student  of  Mar^dand  history  and  a  member  of  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  on  the  authority  of 
the  slender  stock  of  materials  then  at  his  command, 
asserted  that  Sir  George  Calvert  was  no  religious 
hero  at  all,  but  simpl)-  a  politician  and  a  merchant, 
he  was  pitied  even  by  the  members  of  his  own 
church  as  being  the  victim  of  a  narrow-minded 
and  ungenerous  spirit ;  and  doughty  champions 
forthwith  appeared  from  among  Churchmen  them- 
selves, to  prove  the  fallacy  of  his  statements,  and 
so  preserv^e  for  Rome  what  was  regarded  as  her 
due  ;  a  very  remarkable  instance,  by  the  way,  of 
Anglican  fair-mindedness.  ^'^ 

Semper  ego  auditor  tantuiii?  nimiquanine 
reponani ? 

'^  William  Meade  Addison,  of  whose  defence  a  Roman  Cath- 
olic writer  says  :  ' '  With  perfect  candor  I  will  now  add  that 
the  best  argument  I  have  seen  in  favor  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
claim,  is  from  the  pen  of  my  good  and  dear  friend,  William 
Meade  Addison."     Davis,  The  Day  Star,  page  129,  note. 


MARYLAND'S    LEGENDARY   ORIGIN.  1 3 

This  question  is  forced  upon  us.  How  shall  it 
be  answered?  Are  we  to  remain  silent  when 
called  upon  to  believe  as  sober  truth  that  which 
belongs  to  the  region  of  dreamland — the  mere  folk- 
lore and  myths  of  a  nation's  infancy  ?  Is  there  never 
to  come  a  time  when,  impatient  at  hearing  what 
we  cannot  accept,  we  may  cry  out  with  David  : 
"  While  I  was  thus  musing  the  fire  kindled,  and 
at  the  last  I  spake  with  my  tongue?"  Of  course 
ere  this,  other  men  recognising  the  legendary  char- 
acter of  the  accepted  theor)'  of  Maryland's  history, 
have  become  impatient  at  marking  its  wide 
acceptance,  and  have  hastened  to  freely  express 
their  opinions  about  it.  "The  grandiloquent 
phrases,"  says  Mr.  Sydney  George  Fisher,  "in 
which  the  first  settlement  of  the  Maryland  (Roman) 
Catholics  at  St.  Mary's,  on  the  Potomac,  is  de- 
scribed as  the  home  of  religious  liberty  and  its 
only  home  in  the  wide  world,  can  deceive  only  the 
ignorant."  ^^  Unfortunately,  the  firmest  believers  in 
this  theory,  at  any  rate  the  most  active  propagand- 
ists of  it,  have  not  come  only  from  the  lowest  of 
the  people.  They  are  of  all  sorts  and  conditions 
of  men,  not  excluding,  as  we  have  seen,  the  most 

'6  Fisher,  vol.  ii,  page  156,  Meri,  Women  and  Manners  in 
Colonial  Times. ' ' 


14  MARYLAND'S    LEGENDARY    ORIGIN. 

literary,  the  most  eminent,  and  the  most  cultured 
in  the  land. 

That  so  many  really  believe  in  what  I  do  not  hes- 
itate to  describe  as  an  unhistorical  and  apocryphal, 
account  is  capable  of  a  very  simple  explanation. 
What  Bancroft  says  of  American  histor}^  in  general, 
may  be  said  with  equal  truth  of  Maryland  history 
in  particular  :  "  The  early  history  was  often  writ- 
ten with  a  carelessness  which  seized  on  rumors 
and  vague  recollections  sufficient  authority  for  an 
assertion  which  satisfied  prejudice  by  wanton  per- 
versions, and  which,  where  materials  were  not  at 
hand,  substituted  the  inferences  of  the  writer  for 
authenticated  facts.  These  early  books  have  ever 
since  been  cited  as  authorities,  and  the  errors, 
sometimes  repeated  even  by  considerate  writers, 
whose  distrust  was  not  excited,  have  almost  ac- 
quired a  prescriptive  right  to  a  place  in  the  annals, 
of  America."  ^'  That  this  explanation  is  a  sufficient- 
ly accurate  solution  of  the  problem,  Bancroft  him- 
self afterwards  furnished  ample  proof,  for  even  he, 
when  he  came  to  deal  with  Maryland,  solemnh' 
retailed  as  reliable  history,  the  folk-lore  and  legends 
of  her  past.  But  with  all  due  respect  for  the 
probity  and   integrity  of  these   eminent   men,  and 

'"  Bancroft,  vol,  i,  preface,  page  6,  loth  edition. 


MARYLAND'S    I.EGENDARY    ORIGIN.  1 5 

of  the  many  others  who  have  expressed  the  same 
views,  and  have  published  them  to  the  world,  I 
may  not  fail  to  ask  attention  to  the  fact  that  the 
evidence  of  historical  writers  who  depend  upon 
each  other  is  not  cumulative.  An  echo  adds  noth- 
ing of  value  to  the  voice.  It  is  a  sound  only.  Yet 
every  one  of  these  voices  is  only  an  echo  of  other 
and  earlier  voices  proclaiming  Mdthout  examination 
and  without  adequate  authority  to  an  uncritical 
and  uninformed  age.  Sir  George  Calvert's  remarka- 
ble services  to  humanity  and  to  religion. 

When  Bancroft  wrote  of  Maryland  in  subsequent 
editions  he  made  it  abundantly  clear  that  he  recog- 
nized his  mistakes.  Yet  in  nothing  is  his  enlight- 
enment more  observable  than  in  his  treatment  of 
Sir  George  Calvert.  In  his  first  edition  he  had 
glorified  him  as  "  the  first  in  the  history  of  the 
Christian  world  to  seek  for  religious  security  and 
peace  by  the  practice  of  justice,  and  not  by  the 
exercise  of  power  ;  to  plan  the  establishment  of  pop- 
ular institutions  with  the  enjoyment  of  liberty  of  con- 
science.^^ In  his  last  edition  he  is  content  to  acknow- 
ledge him  as  deserving  "to  be  ranked  among  the 
wisest  and  most  benevolent  of  lawgivers,  for  he  con- 

^^  Bancroft,  vol.  i,  page  244,  loth  edition.     Compare  preface, 
page  6,  same  vol. 


1 6  MARYLAND'S    LEGENDARY    ORIGIN. 

nected  his  hopes  of  the  aggrandizement  of  his  family 
with  the  establishment  of  popular  institutions  ;  and, 
being  a  Papist,  wanted  not  charity  tow^ards  Protes- 
tants." E\'en  Calvert's  enemies  could  have  taken 
no  exception  to  so  mild  a  commendation.  "  But 
how  has  the  gold  become  dim  and  the  most  fine 
o^old  chanofed." '"  Yet  this  was  Bancroft's  latest 
utterance  on  the  subject. 

The  religious  toleration  theory,  however,  once 
given  to  the  world,  its  subsequent  propagation  has 
been  a  matter  of  course.  With  the  rise  among  us 
of  a  colonial  cult,  with  its  societies  of  colonial  dames 
and  its  sons  of  revolutionary  sires  ;  its  revival  of 
colonial  forms  and  reverence  for  lengthy  pedigrees  ; 
there  has  come  upon  us  as  a  side  developement,  a 
Calvert  cult.  The  offspring,  like  its  parent,  serv^es 
a  useful,  though  widely  different  purpose.  It  owes 
no  apology  for  its  existence.  It  has  a  work  to  do. 
And  by  special  societies  formed  for  the  purpose,  b}' 
frequent  addresses  from  distinguished  men,  accorded 
through  its  influence  generous  space  and  a  promi- 
nent place  in  the  columns  of  a  sympathetic  press,  it 
carries  on  this  work,  at  once  thoroughh"  practical, 
and  eminently  successful. ^'^ 

'"  Lam.  iv,  i. 

■^*' The  orator  at  the  jubilee  of  "The  Maryland  Pilgi-inis' 
Association"    did  full   justice  to   his  theme  as  he  eloquently 


MARYLAND'S    LEGENDARY   ORIGIN.  1 7 

We  need  not  therefore  marvel  greatly  at  the  suc- 
cessful work  of  the  cult ;  indeed,  we  shall  marvel 
still  less  if  we  remember  that  in  addition  to  these 
agencies  it  has  one  auxiliary  at  its  command  which 
exceeds  in  wide-spread  influence  all  other  agencies 
combined.  The  use  in  our  schools  of  untrustworthy 
histories^^  is  doing  its  work  grandly  and  effectively. 
When  once  a  child  has  imbibed  teaching  which  is 
thus  given  under  the  sanction  of  the  state,  the  cult 
has  little  to  do  beyond  safe-guarding  the  impression 
made.  Its  aim  has  in  fact  been  largel}^  accomplished 
by  the  state  herself.  No  doubt  as  soon  as  the  true 
character  of  these  lesson-books  becomes  more  widely 
known,  the  state  will  refuse  its  sanction  to  them. 

What  evidence  do  I  offer  as   I   challenge   with 

told  his  hearers  that  no  sooner  were  the  colonists,  who,  two 
hundred  and  sixty-three  years  ago,  "left  their  homes  because 
of  persecution,  planted  on  Maryland  soil,  than  they  declared  that 
intolerance  and  persecution  should  have  no  existence  among 
them."  (Baltimore  Sim,  March  25th,  1897.)  Was  even  this 
eulogy  considered  as  altogether  too  poor  a  tribute  for  a  jubilee 
gathering?  It  would  appear  so,  for  shortly  afterward  another 
declared,  that  Calvert  as  a  ruler  was  the  first  in  the  history 
of  the  world  to  declare  civil  and  religious  liberty  to  all  men 
alike.  (D.  J.  Scully  in  Baltimore  Sun,  May  25th,  1897.) 
Here  we  may  presume  the  cult  is  in  full  bloom.  After  this, 
what  more  remains  to  be  said  ? 

^'  Cp.  Onderdonk's  History  for  the  Use  of  Schools, — a  mere 
summary  of  McSherry's  Roman  Catholic  History.  History  of 
the  United  States  for  Schools,  E.  Johnstone. 


1 8  MARVLANlVs    I.KGENDARV   ORIGIN. 

such  sweeping-  statements,  the  cherished  history  of 
a  great  state?  This  it  will  be  my  object  in  the 
follovvang  pages  to  show.  I  am  of  course  sure  to  be 
misrepresented."'  But  then  I  am  also  sure  of  the 
kindly  judgment  of  those  whose  opinions  I  value. 
"  Every  one  admits,"  wrote  vSevern  Teackle  Wallis, 
"  that  if  the  interests  of  truth  demand  at  any  time 
a  reversal  of  the  judgments  of  the  past,  neither 
prejudice,  nor  prescription,  nor  sentiment,  can  be 
permitted  to  stop  the  way."  ""^  In  this  line  have  we 
an  unconscious  prophec}-  ?  Did  the  writer  foresee 
the  passing  of  the  ''pilgrims?"  It  may  be  so. 
Yet  none  contended  more  zealously  than  he  did 
for  the  pilgrim  theory'  and  the  honor  due  to  the 
Calverts.  With  such  men,  how^ever,  truth  is  always 
the  first  consideration. 

"  Note  the  following  :  "  Scepticism  has  often  united  with 
bigotry  in  the  feeble  and  inglorious  attempt  to  overthrow  the 
facts  of  external  history, "  .  .  .  "  It  goes  upon  the  assump- 
tion that  man  is  mean  ;  that  he  has  no  generous  or  noble  spring 
of  action."     Davis,  The  Day  Star,  page  254. 

'^'^  Wallis,  Critical  and  Political  Essays,  vol.  ii,  page  105. 


CHAPTER  II. 

SIR  GEORGE  CALVERT  AT  THE  COURT 
OF  KING  JAMES  I. 

"  Oh!  that  a  dream  so  sweet,  so  long  enjoyed 
Should  be  so  sadly,  cruelly  destroy 'd." 

Moore  :  "  Lalla  Rookh." 

An  unpopular  effort  at  royal  matchmaking, 
doomed  from  the  first  to  failure,  and  resulting  in 
the  politic  retirement  from  office  of  a  prominent 
state  official  as  a  salve  to  a  nation's  wounded  pride ; 
a  fruitless  attempt  to  achieve  wealth  where  a  barren 
soil  and  a  rigorous  climate  alike  made  it  almost 
impossible  to  produce  even  the  necessaries  of  life  ; 
a  coasting  voyage  in  search  of  a  more  genial  climate 
and  a  kindlier  soil,  extending  from  the  rocky  shores 
of  Newfoundland  to  the  entrance  of  the  James 
River  in  Virginia ;  a  distinct  refusal  on  the  part  of 
the  Virginians  to  violate  their  laws  in  order  to 
bestow  citizenship  upon  a  stranger ;  a  journey  back 
to  England  for  the  purpose  of  appealing  to  the 
king  in  person  for  a  share  of  that  goodly  land  which 
the  Virginian  colonists  were  enjoying ;  followed  by 


20  AT  THE  COURT  OF  KING  JAMES  I. 

the  royal  gift  of  a  large  portion  of  the  Virginian 
territory ;  these  were  the  somewhat  inauspicious 
beginnings  which  culminated  in  the  founding  of 
the  Province  of  Maryland. 

These  events  carrv'  us  back  to  the  days  and  the 
court  of  King  James,  the  Sixth  of  Scotland  and 
First  of  England.  But  if  we  would  understand  the 
histor\'  of  Maryland  aright,  and  especially  her 
ecclesiastical  histor}',  we  must  go  futher  back 
still — to  the  reigns  of  Elizabeth  and  her  father 
Henry,  if  not  even  to  Henry  VII,  the  first  of  the 
Tudor  line.  We  must  not  disregard  the  importance 
of  thus  looking  far  away  from  Mainland  herself  if 
we  would  find  the  true  genesis  of  her  history,  and 
possess  the  key  to  many  of  her  problems.  For  just 
as  it  would  be  useless  for  one  to  attempt  to  form  an 
accurate  judgment  of  a  man's  character,  without 
knowing  anything  of  his  early  environment  and 
training,  so  it  would  be  vain  to  expect  to  properly 
appreciate  Maryland's  ecclesiastical  beginnings 
without  knowing  something  of  those  old-world 
influences  which  so  manifestly  contributed  towards 
making  her  what  she  is  today.  Consequently  our 
researches  will  naturally  take  us  across  the  seas  to 
England,  to  Spain,  to  Italy,  and  even  to  wild  and 
rocky  Newfoundland  in  this  western  world. 


AT  THE  COURT  OF  KING  JAMEvS  I.  21 

Maryland  history,  whether  civil  or  ecclesiastical, 
properly  opens  at  the  court  of  King  James.  There 
we  first  meet  with  George  Calvert,  to  whose  instru- 
mentality Maryland  owes  her  political  existence. 
And  yet  there  was  another  man,  a  contemporary  of 
Sir  George,  who,  though  at  the  time  a  prisoner, 
was  bearing  no  inconsiderable  part  in  the  making 
of  the  province.  This  was  Sir  Walter  Raleigh, 
"  that  prince  of  courtesy,"  the  foremost  statesman 
of  his  age,  "  and  founder  of  the  English  Empire  in 
America,"  ^  as  the  tablet  erected  by  Americans  in 
Westminster  Abbey  justly  bears  witness,  a  man  of 
such  brilliant  and  varied  gifts  that  we  may  say  of 
him  as  of  Shakespeare  :  "  We  shall  not  look  upon 
his  like  again."  Such  a  man  even  in  prison  could 
not  be  without  influence  ;  and  w^hen  in  after  years 
Calvert  sought  to  plant  a  colony  in  Newfoundland, 
and,  failing  to  achieve  success  there,  turned  his  face 
with  like  intent  towards  prosperous  Virginia,  he  was 
in  truth  but  following  the  lead  of  the  great  statesman 
to  whom  he  had  been  already  largely  indebted  for 
valuable  information  and  advice,  and  for  important 
sea-charts  and  very  helpfiil  manuscripts  on  the  art 
of  war,  and  on  the  sea-ports  of  the  world.^ 

'  A  History  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  America, 
Wilberforce,  page  9. 

^  Terra  Maries,  Neill,  page  16. 


22  AT   THE   COURT    OF    KING    JAMES   I. 

George  Calvert  was  born  about  1578  in  the  little 
Yorkshire  town  of  Kipling,  some  twenty  miles 
from  Durham,  where  now,  as  then,  Cuthbert's 
Cathedral 

' '  huge  and  vast 
Looks  down  upon  the  Wear." 

It  was  perhaps  the  proximity  of  his  home  to 
Durham,  which  accounted  for  his  entering  Trinity 
College,  Oxford,  a  College  which  owed  its  founda- 
tion and  maintenance  to  the  princely  munificence 
of  the  Bishops  of  Durham.  He  remained  at  Oxford 
until  he  graduated,  when  he  became  private  secre- 
tar}'  to  Sir  Robert  Cecil,  then  Secretar}-  of  State, 
and  afterwards  Earl  of  Salisbur)',  one  of  the  most 
influential  men  in  England.  It  was  an  auspicious 
beginning  for  an}-  young  aspirant  for  political 
honors.  Soon  afterwards  }'oung  Calvert  came 
under  the  notice  of  the  king  himself,  by  whom 
he  was  appointed  clerk  to  the  Priv}'  Council.  It 
then  seemed  as  if  his  ultimate  success  was  assiu"ed. 
Promotion  so  rapidly  followed  that  at  forty  years  of 
age  he  had  actually  succeeded  his  patron  in 
the  secretar\ship.  What  might  have  been  his 
future,  and  what  in  that  event  the  future  of 
Maryland,  had  the  affairs  of  the  nation  gone 
smoothh'  on,  it  is  impossible   to  sa}'.     He   might 


AT   THE   COURT   OF   KING   JAMES    I.  23 

have  become  Prime  Minister  of  England,  and 
Maryland  might  never  have  known  him.  But  the 
king  whom  Calvert  served  was  not  distinguished  for 
the  possession  of  tact,  or  even  of  common  sense,  and 
his  new  Secretary  of  State  unfortunately  eventually 
came  to  stake  upon  one  of  the  worst  of  his  errors  of 
judgment  his  own  political  future.  All  England 
was  against  James.  "  Consider,"  wrote  an  intelli- 
gent foreigner,  "  for  pity's  sake  what  must  be 
the  state  and  condition  of  a  prince  whom  Parlia- 
ment braves  and  despises,  and  who  is  universally 
hated  by  the  whole  people."'^ 

Awkward  in  address  and  slovenly  in  appearance, 
of  excessive  vanity,  ridiculous  prejudices  and 
infinite  littleness  of  soul,  and  yet  withal  possessed 
of  such  overweening  notions  of  his  own  kingly 
prerogatives,  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  James' 
subjects  regarded  him  more  as  a  buffoon  than  as 
a  king.  This  was,  however,  the  man  under  whom 
Calvert  had  come  to  the  front  as  the  exponent  in 
Parliament  of  his  follies,  and  the  minister  to  put 
them  into  practice.  It  need  hardly  be  stated  that 
to  have  been  the  obsequious  follower  of  such  a 
monarch  as  this,  will  scarcely  tend,  in  the  opinion 

^  Ibid,  page  22.     Vide  also,  History  of  the  E^iglish  People. 
Green,  vol.  iv,  page  15. 


24  AT   THE   COURT   OF    KING   JAMES   I. 

of  those  most  competent  to  judge,  to  exalt  Calvert 
to  the  level  of  the  world's  greatest  benefactors. 

King  James  had  for  years  set  his  heart  upon 
marrying  his  son  Charles,  then  heir  to  the  throne, 
to  the  Infanta  of  Spain/  One  marv^els  that  even 
by  him  so  foolish  a  design  could  have  been  enter- 
tained, notwithstanding  the  fascinating  vision  of  the 
flowing  into  his  depleted  treasury  of  2,000,000 
crowns  in  Spanish  gold,  which  went  with  the 
princess  as  dowry."^  No  doubt  Spain,  with  an  em- 
pire extending  over  both  the  old  and  the  new  worlds, 
loomed  large  in  the  eyes  of  the  man  who,  as  James 
VI.  of  Scotland,  had  merely  been  king  of  "  the 
smallest  and  meanest  of  European  realms,"  and 
whose  "  actual  power  had  been  less  than  that  of 
an  English  peer."*'  Dazzled,  however,  as  he  was 
by  his  unexpected  elevation  to  the  English  throne, 
the  alliance  of  his  house  to  the  first  power  in 
Europe  seemed  the  last  prize  of  greatness.  But 
Spain  was  not  what  she  had  been.  The  destruc- 
tion of  the  Armada  had  ruined  forever  both  her 
naval  prestige  and  her  naval  supremacy,  while  her 
long  and  impotent  struggle  with  the  Netherlands 
had  greatly  weakened  her  army.     She  was  a  falling 

*  Green,  vol.  iv,  page  30. 

^  Ibid,  vol.  iv,  page  31  ;  Smollet,  vol.  v,  page  58. 

*  Green,  vol.  iii,  page  438. 


AT   THE   COURT   OF    KING   JAMES    I.  25 

state.  Even  Buckingham  was  fully  prepared  "  to 
prove  the  actual  penurie  and  proud  beggarie  "  of 
Spain. 

But  it  was  not  this  which  weighed  with  Eng- 
lishmen, as  they  considered  the  question  of  the 
Spanish  marriage.  There  might  be  negotiations 
of  peace  between  the  nations,  but  the  English 
people  had  not  forgotten  that  if  Spain  had  had 
her  way,  their  country  would  have  been  reduced 
to  a  condition  little  better  than  that  of  a  Spanish 
province,  and  their  national  Church,  which  Magna 
Chart  a  had  declared  should  be  forever  free,  again 
brought  into  bondage.  Naturally,  therefore,  a 
country  which  had  thus  perilously  assailed  their 
liberties  as  Englishmen  and  their  faith  as  Church- 
men, and  which  still  cherished  her  ancient  spirit, 
was  hateful  in  their  eyes,  and  any  treaty  of  peace 
with  her  must  have  been  as  a  vv^all  built  with 
untempered  mortar. 

Nor  was  this  all.  Men  still  lived  who  had  seen 
the  fires  of  Mary's  reign,  fires  which  it  was  more 
than  suspected  had  been  kindled  by  that  misguided 
queen  under  the  influence  of  her  Spanish  husband. 
Rightly  or  wrongly,  the  English  people  regarded 
Philip  as  guilty,  and  they  breathed  more  freeU' 
when,   unwilling  to  live    longer  among  a    nation 


26  AT   THE   COURT   OF   KING   JAMES   I. 

which  SO  evidently  detested  him,  the  glooiii}'  hus- 
band of  Queen  Mary  shook  the  dust  of  England 
off  his  feet,  and  returned  to  his  own  land.  The 
English  nation  had  had,  in  fact,  too  recent  experi- 
ence of  a  Spanish  match  to  view  another  with 
equanimity. 

Neither  did  the  Spaniards  themselves  desire  such 
an  alliance.  They,  too,  had  had  their  experience, 
and  it  w^as  not  a  happy  one.  They  had  not  for- 
gotten the  wrongs  of  the  Infanta  of  Aragon. 
Perhaps  another  English  king  might  also  find  it 
convenient  to  repudiate  his  Spanish  wife  while 
retaining  her  Spanish  dowry.  Moreover,  the  utter 
defeat  of  their  comrades  at  the  hands  of  Drake  and 
his  brave  sailors,  had  filled  them  with  bitterness. 
Its  memoiy  rankled  in  their  breasts,  and  until  they 
had  obtained  satisfaction  for  the  national  disgrace, 
they  wanted,  not  peace,  but  a  sword. 

Then,  too,  they  had  in  reality  nothing  to  gain 
by  the  marriage.  After  all,  it  was  only  a  one-sided 
affair.  Consequently,  the  stars  might  sooner  be 
expected  to  fall  from  heaven  at  the  bidding  of 
King  James  than  that,  with  their  consent,  this 
matrimonial  alliance  should  be  made.  Neverthe- 
less they  had  no  objection  to  dally  with  the 
proposals  made  to   them.     But   their  negotiations 


AT  THE   COURT   OF   KING  JAMES   I.  27 

were  all  a  blind,  a  mere  pretense,  a  veritable 
chasing  of  shadows,  a  device  to  gain  time  for  the 
exigencies  of  Spanish  politics,  "  a  stratagem  in  fact 
of  the  court  of  Spain."  ''  A  suspicion  that  he  and 
his  father  were  being  duped,  seems  at  length  to 
have  crossed  the  mind  of  Prince  Charles  himself. 
And  so  in  part,  though  it  may  have  been,  in  a 
spirit  of  gallantry,  but  certainly  in  part  imbued 
with  the  determination  that  an  end  of  all  this  dal- 
lying should  be  reached,  attended  only  by  Buck- 
ingham, he  suddenly  left  England  in  disguise  and 
appeared  in  person  at  Madrid.  What  this  act 
meant  to  the  national  feeling  in  England — the 
shame  and  wounding  of  the  nation's  spirit  and 
pride — we  cannot  fathom.  All  men,  in  the  words 
of  Constance  to  King  John,  cried  out : 

' '  Gone  to  be  married  ! 
Gone  to  swear  a  peace  ! 
It  cannot  be. ' ' 

At  once  the  rumor  of  the  prince's  visit  flew  to 
Newmarket.  The  Council  knelt  to  implore  the 
king  to  tell  them  if  it  were  true.  They  were  told 
it  was  true.  For  Sir  George  Calvert  it  was  the 
beginning  of  the  end. 

The  tedious  prosecution  by  Prince  Charles  of  his 
suit,  closing  with  the  visit  to  the  Spanish  court, 

'  SmoUet,  vol.  v,  page  38. 


28  AT   THE   COURT   OF    KING   JAMES   I. 

somewhat  recalls  the  visit  paid  by  Ethelbert,  King 
of  Kent,  and  Bretwalda  of  Britain,  to  Charibert, 
King  of  Paris,  as  a  suitor  for  the  hand  of  the 
Princess  Bertha.  Before  Charibert  would  consent 
to  the  marriage,  he  required  that  his  daughter 
should  have  liberty  to  practise  her  own  religion, 
and  to  have  her  own  chapel  and  priests.  And  in 
this  the  French  king  did  wisely,  for  Ethelbert 
was  only  a  pagan,  while  Bertha  was  a  Christian. 
That  Prince  Charles  was  a  member  of  the  same 
Holy  Catholic  Church  as  themselves,  howbeit  of 
another  land,  did  not  apparently  occur  to  the 
Spaniards.  Like  Bertha,  their  princess  was  to 
have  her  own  chajDel,  priests,  religious  household, 
and  perfect  freedom  of  conscience,  all  of  wdiich 
Charles  readily  promised  her.^  She  was  further- 
more, to  have  the  right  of  directing  the  religious 
education  of  her  children.  This,  too,  was  granted. 
But  the  Spaniards,  following  the  leadership  of  the 
Pope,"'  were  still  unsatisfied.  Something  yet  hin- 
dered. The  truth  was  that  Charles  had  been  too 
complaisant.  The  Spaniards  would  have  been  bet- 
ter pleased  if  he  had  stood  out  against  granting 
some  of  their  conditions.     So  gracious,   however, 

^  Smollet,  vol.  v,  page  62. 
"  Hume,  vol.  vi,  pnge  133. 


AT   THE   COURT   OF    KING   JAMES   I.  29 

had  he  been,  that  they  were  in  a  dilemma.  Yet 
what  excuse  for  any  further  delay  could  they  offer  ? 
Apparently  none.  Judging  Prince  Charles  from 
the  standpoint  of  narrow-minded  and  bigoted  men, 
they  had  asked  for  perfect  religious  liberty  for  the 
princess,  and  he  had  pledged  it.  Beyond  this  no 
loyal  and  upright  Christian  could  go  ;  and  what- 
ever were  the  faults  of  Charles,  whether  as  man 
or  prince,  disloyalty  to  his  own  National  Church 
was  not  one.  It  was  indeed  his  loyalty  to  that 
Church  w^hich,  twenty-two  years  later,  cost  him 
his  life,  wdien  it  was  easily  within  his  power  to 
have  saved  it.  Even  the  influence  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  princess  he  afterwards  married,  devotedly 
attached  to  her  as  he  was,  never  weakened  his 
earnest  attachment  to  his  own  Church.  In  this 
at  any  rate  Charles  was  consistent  throughout  his 
whole  career. 

The  next  request  which  the  Spanish  court  made, 
shows  the  desperate  straits  to  which  Charles' 
unexpected  liberality  had  reduced  the  Spaniards. 
He  must  become  a  Roman  Catholic,  or  the  infanta 
could  not  be  his.^"  This  was  the  climax.  Angry 
and  mortified  at  such  unreasonable  treatment,  the 
prince   abruptly  returned    to  England,  where   the 

^"  Smollet,  vol.  v,  page  63. 


30  AT   THE   COURT   OF    KING   JAMES   I. 

ringing  of  bells  and  firing  of  guns  testified  to  the 
relief  of  the  nation.  The  Spanish  party,  as  the 
few  court  sympathizers  were  called,  among  whom 
Calvert  was  conspicuous,  fell  into  immediate  dis- 
grace. 

Probably  as  a  Roman  Catholic,  Calvert  looked 
forward  to  the  advent  of  a  queen  of  his  own  faith 
as  likely  to  be  of  considerable  advantage  to  him. 
It  is  true  that  he  had  not  always  been  openly  of 
the  Roman  obedience,  having  outwardh-  been  for 
many  years  a  member  of  the  Church  of  England  ; 
in  fact,  ever  since  he  obtained  court  preferment. 
But,  like  many  other  secret  Romanists,  he  had 
withheld  the  revelation  of  his  religious  belief  until 
the  time  should  come  when  it  would  not  be  dis- 
advantageous to  acknowledge  it.^^  Of  course  Calvert 
could  not  have  been  possessed  of  very  deep  spiritual 
feelings.  Politicians  are  very  rarely  men  of 
markedly  devout  minds,  or  of  strongl}'  fonned 
religious  habits,  and  this  particular  politician  was 
no  better  than  his  class.  His  religion  had  never 
been  burdensome.  When  it  appeared  likely  to 
become  so,  he  readily  dispensed  with  it ;  all  too 
readily,  if  Archbishop  Abbott's  remark  that  he 
had  turned  papist   three   times  be  correct ;    and  as 

"  He  avowed  himself  a  Romanist  after  his  fall  from  power. 


AT   THE   COURT   OF   KING   JAMES   I.  3 1 

a  contemporary  the  Archbishop  knew  more  of  Cal- 
vert than  we  do,  and  as  an  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury he  was  not  likely  to  be  found  making  reckless 
statements,  easy  of  refutation,  concerning  the 
public  men  of  his  day.  The  truth  about  Calvert 
appears  to  be  that  he  was  an  ambitious  man  who 
had  placed  the  reaching  of  the  goal  of  his  ambition 
before  everything  else.  With  this  in  view,  he  was 
ready  to  barter  away  the  civil  liberties  of  his  coun- 
trymen, the  best  interests  of  his  country,  and  even 
his  own  religious  and  spiritual  welfare.  The  seals 
of  ofhce  glittered  in  his  eyes.  Prompted  then  by 
ambition  he  had  conformed  to  the  National  Church, 
and  had  not  been  found  afraid  to  use  even  religion 
itself  as  the  ladder  by  which  he  might  rise  to 
wealth  and  fame.  So  it  came  about  that  to  the 
world  he  was  an  Anglican,  providing  Anglican 
ministrations  for  his  emigrants,  laying  his  Roman 
Catholic  wife  to  rest  in  the  Anglican  church-yard 
at  Hertingfordbur}^,  and  setting  up  a  tablet  to  her 
memory  in  the  little  village  church  ;^"  even  holding 
official  positions  which  required  him  to  administer 
English  laws  against  Roman  Catholics,  while  all 
the  time,  so  far  as  he  was  anything  at  all,  a  mem- 

'■'  Md.  Hist,  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  20.  page  77,  Wilhelm. 


32  AT   THE   COURT   OF    KING   JAMES    I. 

ber  of  the   Holy   Roman  Church.     Well  may  the 
satirist  say  : 

"  All  live  by  seeming. 
The  beggar  begs  w  ith  it,  and  the  gay  courtier 
Gains  land  and  title,  rank  and  rule,  by  seeming." 

Had  the  prince  brought  back  his  Spanish  bride, 
Calvert's  political  aspirations  would  have  had  a 
fair  chance  of  success.  As  it  was,  his  political 
future  was  wrecked.  Placing  his  resignation  in 
the  hands  of  the  king  whom  he  had  obsequiously 
served,  as  Wolsey  hath  it,  "  Not  wisely,  but  too 
well,"  he  retired  from  official  life  with  six  thousand 
pounds  obtained  by  the  enforced  sale  of  his  office, 
a  pension  of  one  thousand  pounds  per  annum,  and 
the  title  of  Baron  of  Baltimore^"^  in  the  peerage  of 
Ireland.^*     This  was  not  much  for  what  Calvert  had 

'■^  Fiske,  Old  Virginia  and  Her  Neighbours,  vol.  i,  page  255, 
appears  to  be  in  error  in  identifying  the  Baltimore  in  County 
Cork  with  the  place  which  gave  Sir  George  Calvert  his  title. 
See  3fd.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  20,  page  118,  Wilhelm.  Sir 
George  Calvert's  barony  was  in  Longford  County,  and  cannot 
be  seen  "from  the  deck  of  a  steamer  passing  the  southwest 
coast  of   Ireland,  not  far  from  Cape  Clear." 

^^  McMahon,  Page  9  ;  Hawks,  page  18.  The  statement  often 
made  that  Calvert  resigned  his  office  because  he  had  become  a 
Roman  Catholic  is  inconsistent  with  admitted  facts  :  ( i ) 
Roman  Catholics  were  not  debarred  from  employment  at  Court 
under  James  I.  (2)  It  was  known  that  Calvert  himself  was  a 
Roman   Catholic  when  he  received  his   appointment.     "The 


AT   THE   COURT   OF    KING    JAMES   I.  ^^ 

done,   for  his   Irish  peerage  did  not  carry  with  it 

the  privileges  of  the  peerage  of  England.  ^"^     Indeed, 

there  he  was  a  commoner  still,  and  his  pension  was 

office  of  treasurer  was  put  in  commission,  and  Secretary  Win- 
wood  dying  about  the  same  time,  his  place  was  divided  between 
Naunton  and  Calvert,  the  first  of  whom  was  a  Protestant  and 
the  other  a  Papist."  This  was  in  1616.  See  SmoUet,  vol.  v, 
page  40.  Moreover,  in  1620  he  is  expressly  mentioned  by  name 
along  with  the  Earls  of  Arundel  and  Worcester,  Lord  Digby 
and  others,  as  "  popishly  affected."  Kenned}',  page  38.  Why 
should  he  have  thought  it  necessary  to  resign,  even  if  he  had 
been  recently  converted  ?  The  only  motive  that  could  compel 
him  to  such  a  course  for  conscience'  sake  was  the  necessity 
of  taking  the  oaths  of  supremacy  and  allegiance,  and  these 
he  had  already  taken.  (3)  When  Calvert  avowed  his  Romanism 
in  1625  Archbishop  Abbott  said  of  him  :  "  He  apparently  turneth 
Papist,  which  he  now  professeth,  this  being  the  third  time  he 
hath  been  to  blame  that  way."  See  Wilhelm,  page  112,  (4)  In 
1624  Calvert's  eldest  son,  Cecil,  was  in  his  i8th  year  ;  Leonard, 
who  came  next,  in  his  i6th.  They  were  both  Roman  Catho- 
lics, so  were  all  his  children.  When  did  they  become  so  ? 
Was  Cecil  "converted"  when  his  father  was?  Was  Leonard? 
This  allegiance  of  all  his  family  to  Rome,  together  with  the 
fact  that  his  mother  was  of  the  Roman  obedience,  and  that  his 
own  adherence  to  it  was  well-known  long  before  his  acknow- 
ledgement of  it,  has  even  suggested  the  question  :  Was  he 
ever  anything  else  than  a  Roman  Catholic?  (5)  Again,  the 
king,  who  entertained  the  most  violently  unreasonable  feelings 
of  hatred  towards  "  perverts  "  but  who  was  kind  and  consider- 
ate for  those  who  were  born  Roman  Catholics,  always  retained 
his  attachment  for  Calvert  to  the  last,  even  making  him  a  peer 
of  the  realm  only  a  few  months  after  his  supposed  conversion, 
and  willingly  granting  to  him  on  his  own  terms  the  charter  of 
his  Newfoundland  plantation. 

''  Green,  vol,  iv,  pages  19,  20.  Baronies  in  this  reign,  and 
especially  Irish  baronies,  were  very  cheap  affairs.  They  were 
actually  put  up  to  sale. 


34  AT   THE   COURT   OF   KING   JAMES   I. 

on  paper  only.  Yet  the  Secretaty's  devotion  to 
to  his  master's  interests  in  other  matters  than  that 
of  the  Spanish  marriage  had  been  iinqnestioned, 
and  he  was  clearly  entitled  to  his  gratitude.  "  As 
a  Parliamentary  tool,  to  bribe,  bully  and  argue  in 
the  House  of  Commons  against  the  great  Coke, 
and  the  noble  band  of  patriots  who  strove  to  give 
England  a  free  parliament,  ^*^  James  liad  had  no 
more  faithful  henchman. 

But  it  is  through  this  contemplated  marriage 
that  we  know  Calvert  well.  We  see  him  as  he 
was,  and  he  was  not  one  whom  Americans  can 
honor  for  his  works'  sake.  Doubtless  he  was  sin- 
cere in  all  he  did,  but  he  was  at  heart  an  imperi- 
alist. His  aims  were  those  of  Strafford  in  the  next 
reign,  or  of  Bismarck  in  our  own  da)-.  He  sought 
to  concentrate  all  power  in  the  hands  of  the  king. 
"  The  justice  of  history  must  avow,"  writes  Ban- 
croft, ''  that  he  misconceived  the  interests  of  his 
country  and  his  king,  and  took  part  in  exposing 
to  danger  civil  liberty  and  the  rights  of  the  Parlia- 
ment of  England."  '"  Surely  a  hea\y  indictment 
this  of  a  benefactor  of  the  human  race.  For  less 
than  this  statesmen  have  been  impeached  as  enemies 
of  their  country. 

^^  Prowse,  Hist,  of  NJld.,  page  92. 

'^  Bancroft,  U.  S.  History,  last  edition,  page  15S, 


AT   THE   COURT   OF    KING   JAMES   I.  35 

But  is  it  not  passing  strange  that  the  man  who 
was  against  all  personal  liberty,  whose  voice  and 
vote  alike,  whose  secret  bribes  and  potent  threats 
were  all  on  the  side  of  unconditional  surrender  to 
the  extreniest  of  monarchical  pretensions,  whose 
colonial  charters  drawn  up  by  himself,  ^^  destitute  of 
a  single  democratic  element  and  sanctioned  by  two 
complacent  kings,  clothed  him  with  powers  never 
before  and  never  since,  to  the  same  extent,  con- 
ferred on  any  British  subject,  so  that  it  was  in  no 
mere  figure  of  speech  but  in  accurate  and  well- 
chosen  phrase  that  his  successor  described  himself 
as  "  true  and  absolute  lord  of  Maryland  and  Ava- 
lon ;  whose  thorough-going  advocacy  of  royal  mea- 
sures in  defiance  of  popular  opinion  brought  his 
public  career  in  England  to  an  untimely  end ;  who, 
on  the  ground  that  it  was  the  name  of  the  Spanish 
historian  who  taught  the  heresy  that  "  the  will  of 
the  people  is  higher  than  the  law  of  tyrants," 
objected  to  the  name  Marianna  for  Maryland,  sug- 
gested by  King  Charles,  and  who  hesitated  not  to 
claim  in  Parliament  that  the  American  territory, 
having   been    acquired    by    conquest,    was    subject 

^**  McMahon,  vol.  i,  page  10;  Anderson,  vol.  ii,  page  113; 
Bancroft,  vol.  i,  page  241,  says:  "The  nature  of  the  docn- 
ment  itself,  and  concurrent  opinion,  leave  no  room  for  doubt 
that  it  was  penned  by  Lord  Baltimore  himself." 


36  AT   THE   COURT   OK    KING   JAMES    I. 

exclusively  to  the  royal  prerogative  ;'^  is  it  not 
strange  that,  by  a  unique  irony  of  fate  here,  in 
America,  the  land  of  all  others  furthest  removed 
from  sympathy  with  all  such  principles  and  ambi- 
tions, this  man  should  have  come  to  be  widely 
regarded  as  a  benevolent  lawgiver,  a  patron  of 
religious  liberty,  and  a  lover  of  popular  institu- 
tions? Certainly  it  is  not  out  of  such  material 
that  great  religious  refonners  and  popular  leaders 
are  connnonly  made. 

^^  Quoted  by  John  P.  Kennedy,  page  22. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON. 
1624-1627. 

"  O!  let  your  honour  cheerfully  go  on, 
End  well  your  well  begun  plantation." 

— Robert  Hayman. 

When  Sir  George  Calvert,  in  1624,  found  himself, 
like  Othello,  with  occupation  gone,  he  had  no 
intention  of  settling  down  to  a  life  of  idleness. 
Those  who  describe  him  as  a  man  of  restless 
energy,  possessed  of  an  endless  capacity  for  work, 
are  probably  right.  Idleness  to  such  a  man  is 
unbearable.  He  must  work,  or  he  will  die.  But 
what  was  he  to  do?  As  a  statesman  he  was  dis- 
credited. His  countrymen  had  repudiated  his 
policy.  Public  life  in  England  was  closed  against 
him.  For  ordinary  business  he  was  now,  of  course, 
totally  unfitted.  Moreover,  the  fascination  which 
political  life  always  exercises  over  those  once  drawn 
within  the  vortex  of  its  influence,  was  upon  him. 
Immediately  following  our  last  presidential  cam- 
paign, a  keen-sighted  observer  of  men  and  things 
wrote  concerning  the  defeated  candidate  :     "  Here- 


38        THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON. 

after  life  in  glorious  ease  becomes  impossible  ;  he 
must  continue  whirling  about  at  high  pressure  and 
seek  excitement."  ^  It  is  ever  thus.  It  is  living 
death  to  the  senator,  the  prime  minister,  the 
president,  to  go  back  to  the  obscurity  of  pri\'ate 
life.  But  it  was  this  hard  fate  which  now  clouded 
the  horizon  of  King  James'  late  Secretary  of  State. 
There  was,  however,  for  Sir  George  Calvert, 
a  way  of  escape.  Across  the  seas,  in  the  Island  of 
Newfoundland,  was  a  door  of  hope.  He  could 
there  take  possession  of  land  which  was  already 
his  ;  establish  a  prosperous  plantation  ;  retrieve  his 
fallen  fortunes,  and  at  the  same  time  work  out  his 
own  peculiar  ideal  of  what  a  true  government 
should  be.  He  had  owned  land  there  since  1621. 
In  that  year  a  certain  Sir  William  Vaughan  had 
sold  to  him  a  part  of  an  immense  territory  which 
he  held  in  the  southeast  corner  of  the  island.^ 
Vaughan  and  Calvert  had  been  friends  and  fellow- 
students  at  Oxford,  and  quite  in  a  natural  way,  as 
one  palms  off  a  worthless  horse  on  a  friend.  Sir 
William  disposed  of  a  large  portion  of  his  unprofi- 
table  grant    to    his    old    friend    of    Oxford    days.* 

^  Mr.  Andrew  Carnegie,  North  American  Review,  January, 
1897. 

'^  Prowse,  Second  Edition,  Chapters,  Page  iii. 
«  Thid. 


THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON.         39 

Here,  however,  was  a  haven  of  refuge  from  the 
storms  now  threatening  his  future.  Deeming  that 
the  time  had  come  to  seek  this  haven,  on  the  i6th 
of  March,  1625,  ^^  publicly  announced  his  inten- 
tion of  migrating  to  Newfoundland.  But  the  death 
of  King  James  on  the  25th  of  March,  only  twelve 
days  afterwards,  threw  all  his  plans  into  confusion. 
In  consequence  of  that  event,  Calvert  did  not 
actually  arrive  in  the  colony  until  the  last  week  in 
July,  1627  ;  iTiore  than  two  years  afterwards. 

Newfoundland  is  not  nowadays  regarded  as  a 
very  desirable  place,  whether  for  settlement  or 
investment.  The  most  ancient  of  English  colonies, 
it  is  certainly  the  most  unfortunate  of  them  all ; 
a  land  of  "historic  misfortune,"  in  the  phrase  of 
the  present  Prime  Minister  of  England,  Lord 
Salisbury-,  the  heir  of  Calvert's  early  patron.  There 
is  now  little  to  attract  anyone  to  its  shores,  if  we 
except  the  lover  of  picturesque  nature,  the  fisher- 
man and  the  sportsman.  These  will  not  be 
disappointed.  But  for  all  others,  that  country  can 
hold  out  few  inducements.  The  patriotism  of  its 
hardy  people  will,  I  know,  not  hesitate  to  dispute 
this,  for  the  Newfoundlander  dearly  loves  his  island 
home,  and  can  ill  brook  that  any  should  think 
little   of    it.       But    then   patriotism    always    sees 


40        THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON. 

through  rose-colored  glasses.  And  the  Newfound- 
land immigrant,  if  such  there  be,  after  a  brief 
experience  of  the  leanness  of  the  country,  will  be 
very  apt  to  agree  with  me. 

Such  at  least  was  my  own  conclusion  when 
some  years  ago  I  first  found  myself  off  the  New- 
foundland coast.  We  had  but  just  come  out  of  a 
latitude  where  the  warm,  sunny  air  of  May  had 
made  an  ocean  voyage  delightful,  into  a  latitude 
where  the  sun  indeed  still  shone  brightly,  but 
the  air  was  cold  and  bracing,  and  the  fog  was 
everywhere.  Soon  isolated  pans  of  ice  appeared 
dazzlingly  white  in  the  cold,  black  water ;  then 

"  It  grew  wondrous  cold  ; 
And  ice,  mast-high,  came  floating  by, 
As  green  as  emerald." 

At  last  immense  ice-fields  hove  in  sight  and 
completely  surrounded  us.  Then  the  dark,  misty 
sky,  catching  from  them  a  luminous  appearance, 
flashed  as  with  the  trembling  light  of  the  aurora. 
Our  environment  was  altogether  Arctic.  Two 
days  later  we  reached  land.  It  was  not  prepossess- 
ing. Dark  red  cliffs,  barren  as  rocks  could  be, 
and  for  the  most  part  covered  with  snow,  rose  up 
precipitously  before  us.  Presently,  through  an 
opening  cleft  in  the  rocky  coast  line,  appropriately 


THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON.         41 

termed  "  The  Narrows,"  we  discerned  the  city  of 
St.  John's,  clinging  to  the  steep  hill-sides  as  if  it 
were  an  Alpine  village. 

The  country  we  were  looking  upon  had  once 
been  known  to  the  Northmen,  who  as  early  as 
the  year  1000,  under  the  leadership  of  a  son  of 
Eric  the  Red,  had  coasted  along  its  shores  and 
explored  its  resources.  Strangely  enough,  those 
hardy  sailors  of  the  Northern  seas  have  left  traces 
of  their  presence  behind  them.  At  a  spot^  not  far 
from  St.  John's  where  at  times  the  wildest  waves 
of  the  Atlantic  break  on  an  iron-girt  shore,  their 
Scandinavian  runes,  cut  in  the  solid  rock,  may 
still  be  seen.  But  the  visit  of  the  Northmen  had 
long  been  as  a  dream  when  one  awaketh,  and  as 
a  tale  that  is  told.  All  knowledge  even  of  the 
existence  of  the  island  had  entirely  passed  away, 
when  Sebastian  Cabot  came  in  1497,  and  revealed 
it  to  the  world  a  second  time.  Notwithstanding, 
however,  Cabot's  rediscovery,  it  remained  for  more 
than  a  centur}^  a  veritable  no-man's  land,  "without 
law,  religion  or  government."  On  the  coming  in 
1583,  of  Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert,  half  brother  of  Sir 
Walter  Raleigh,  there  dawned  a  hope  of  better 
days,  as  Gilbert,  with  pompous  ceremonial,  claimed 

*  Grates  Cove,  Trinity  Bay. 


42         THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON. 

the  island  for  Queen  Elizabeth.  But  it  was  a  mere 
ceremony,  nothing  more ;  and  when  it  was  per- 
formed, Gilbert  embarked  for  his  native  land,  which 
he  was  destined  never  to  see  again.  His  death  in 
mid-Atlantic  left  Newfoundland  to  continue  with- 
out interruption  on  her  chaotic  way. 

Yet  poor  and  of  no  reputation  as  she  is,  New- 
foundland possesses  unique  honors  of  which  more 
favored  American  lands  cannot  boast.  Hers  is  a 
glorious  heritage.  On  her  shores  Englishmen  held 
their  first  Christian  service  in  the  new  world. 
There  also  was  celebrated  for  the  first  time  the 
Holy  Communion.  There,  too,  long  before  the 
settlers  on  the  banks  of  the  James  or  the  Potomac 
had  come  from  their  English  homes,  or  Drake  and 
his  chaplain  had  carried  the  Book  of  Common 
Prayer  within  the  Golden  Gates  of  California,  the 
prayers  of  the  old  English  Church,  uttered  by  her 
own  clergy,  had  been  offered  up  to  God."' 

Newfoundland  can  also  claim  honors  of  another 
kind.  P^or  over  a  hundred  years,  she  was  Eng- 
land's one  and  only  colony.  On  her  soil  England 
first  obtained  a  foothold  in  the  New  World  ;  there 
laying  the  foundation  of  her  colonial  empire. 

^  Lanslot  Thirkill,  of  London,  received  ^20  "upon  a  prest  for 
his  sliipp  going  towards  the  new  Ilande,  22ud  March.  149S;" 
See  Prowse,  Page  12. 


THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON.         43 

The  mother  country  has  not  always  been  mind- 
ful of  her  debt  to  her  eldest  daughter,  yet  New- 
foundland has  always  been  loyal  to  her.  It  was 
she  who  in  the  dark  days  of  1649,  when  men's 
hearts  were  failing  them  for  fear,  boldly  offered 
King  Charles  a  place  of  refuge  from  the  men  who 
were  seeking  his  life.^  Aye,  even  to  the  early 
American  settlers  Newfoundland  has  not  been 
without  honor.  She  was  the  parent  colony  which 
supplied  New  York  with  men  and  appliances  when 
the  younger  settlement  sought  to  establish  a  fishery 
at  Sandy  Hook,  and  she  it  was  who,  at  an  earlier 
date,  in  1623,  saved  the  " kingdom  of  Virginia" 
from  semi-starvation  by  a  timely  cargo  of  fish.'^ 

It  is  thus  evident  that  Newfoundland,  two  and 
a  half  centuries  ago,  occupied  a  very  different 
position  from  that  which  she  now  occupies,  and 
unless  we  bear  this  in  mind,  we  may  go  astray  and 
fail  to  appreciate  the  situation.  Did  Englishmen 
then  think  of  foreign  adventure,  there  was  no  land 
which  presented  so  favorable  an  opportunity  as 
their  only  colony.  In  other  lands  they  met  the 
foreigner,  and  lived  imder  his  flag ;  but  there  they 
lived  under  their  own,   and  were  amid  their  own 

*  Prowse,  Second  Edition,  Page  135. 
"^  Ibid,  Page  151. 


44        THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON. 

kith  and  kin.  Nowhere  else  could  they  do  this, 
for  the  fond  colonization  dreams  of  Elizabeth's 
reign  had  all  come  to  naught ;  having  vanished 
like  shadows.  Gone  was  Raleigh's  El  Dorado. 
Perished,  too,  his  settlement  at  Roanoke.  An 
Indian  raid  had  quenched  it  in  blood.  Drake's 
voyage,  so  full  of  promise,  had  borne  no  fruit. 
England,  notwithstanding  the  auspicious  begin- 
nings of  her  colonial  policy,  had  not  a  single  set- 
tlement left  on  all  the  American  coast.  There  was 
small  encouragement  for  Englishmen  to  go  forward 
in  colonization  ventures,  and  nothing  at  all  to 
suggest  their  future  greatness  as  the  actual  planters 
of  this  vast  continent — the  true  founders  and  ances- 
tors of  this  now  mighty  American  nation. 

After  the  peaceful  settlement  of  King  James 
upon  the  English  throne,  when  England  and  Scot- 
land at  last  recognized  the  same  sovereign,  the 
passion  for  colonial  adventure  broke  out  again,  and 
public  attention  in  England  was  inevitably  centred 
first  upon  Newfoundland.  Why  should  not  the 
island  become  the  centre  of  British  trade  in  America, 
and  a  lesser  England  ?  Its  waters,  in  treasures  of 
fish  inexhaustible,  were  richer  than  gold-mines — 
and  such  treasures  !  No  inland  mines  famed  for 
wealth  were  like  those  around  her  coast.     Bacon 


THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON.         45 

spoke  but  the  simple  trutli  when  he  said  that  the 
Newfoundland  fishing  grounds  were  "richer  than 
the  mines  of  Peru."  Immense  tracts  of  fertile  land 
awaited  the  coming  of  the  husbandman,  while 
primeval  forests  stood  there  in  lonely  grandeur.  In 
the  same  latitude  as  France,  it  was  naturally  sup- 
posed that  its  climate  was  far  superior  to  that  of 
the  mother  country-.  Here  assuredly  great  fortunes 
might  easily  be  made,  and  life  itself  be  passed  amid 
genial  influences  and  pleasant  surroundings.  More- 
over, popular  rumour  had  it  that  it  was  about  to 
become  a  naval  station  for  the  great  northwest  pas- 
sage to  the  Indies,  soon  to  be  opened.  A  book 
entitled  Westward  Ho  had  just  been  published, 
describing  the  advantages  of  the  country  in  the 
most  glowing  terms,  and  a  copy  of  it  had  been  sent 
to  the  Privy  Council.  Newfoundland  had  thus 
loomed  up  out  of  the  fog  as  a  newer  and  better 
El  Dorado. 

At  once  many  chartered  companies,  like  the 
Royal  Chartered  Company  of  South  Africa  today, 
sprang  into  existence,  whose  business  it  was  to  open 
up  so  favored  an  island  for  immediate  occupation 
and  commerce.  The  first  of  these  companies  was 
that  of  John  Guy,  alderman  and  merchant  of  the 
city  of  Bristol.     Taking  several  men  with  him  Guy 


46         THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON. 

first  went  to  Newfoundland  in  1610.  Well  satisfied 
with  what  he  saw,  he  returned  to  England  to  make 
preparations  for  colonizing  on  an  extensive  scale. 
In  1 61 2  he  again  arrived  in  Newfoundland  w4th  a 
very  large  company,  "  all  of  civil  life,  artizans  and 
traders,"  accompanied  also  by  the  Rev.  Erasmus 
Stourton,  the  first  clergyman  of  the  Church  of 
England  to  settle  in  that  colony.^  Other  traders 
soon  followed.  In  a  few  years  there  were  not  less 
than  six  regularly  constituted  trading  companies, 
which  had  parcelled  out  the  whole  island  among 
themselves.  One  of  the  latest  to  arrive  of  these 
companies  was  that  of  Sir  George  Calvert,  under 
the  spiritual  care  of  the  Rev.  Richard  James,  a 
clergyman,  like  Stourton,  of  the  National  Church, 
whom  Calvert  had  sent  out  with  his  emigrants.^ 

The  Rev.  Richard  James,  an  Oxford  graduate, 
seems  to  have  been  intimately  connected  with  the 
fortunes  of  Sir  George  Calvert.  His  death  took  place 
in  England  in  1638.^'^     Later  on  we  shall  read  of  a 

■^Stourton's  headquarters  were  at  Cupids,  but  his  parish  or 
mission  extended  completely  around  Conception  Bay,  and 
from  Cape  St.  Francis  to  F'erryland,  the  estate  Sir  George 
Calvert  was  eventually  to  purchase  from  Sir  William  Vaughan. 

'  Neill,  Terra  ISIaricr,  Page  46, 

^'^  A  thence  Oxoniensis,  d.\\(\  Gentleman's  Magazine  i']6']  and 
1768,  Vol.  i,  Pp.  524,  525. 


THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON.         47 

Rev.  Richard  James  on  Kent  Island,  in  Chesapeake 
Bay,  who  made  his  appearance  in  the  "  Great  Bay  " 
about  the  time  that  Sir  George  himself  appeared 
there.  He  also  was  an  Oxford  man,  and  died  in 
England  in  1638.  It  would  seem,  therefore,  a 
reasonable  supposition,  that  the  Richard  James  of 
Avalon  was  the  Richard  James  of  Kent  Island. 
If  so  we  have  here  an  interesting  proof  that  Sir 
George  Calvert  had  not  entirely  forsaken  the  pro- 
fession of  politics,  and  that  his  right  hand  had  not 
forgotten  its  cimning.  Though  then  a  professed 
Roman  Catholic,  and  having  clergy  of  his  own 
faith  in  his  province  yet,  as  we  shall  see,  he  took 
care  when  the  time  came  for  him  to  migrate 
from  Newfoundland  to  Virginia,  to  leave  the 
Roman  priests  behind  him,  and  sail  in  company 
with  the  Church  of  England  clergyman  to  the 
Church  of  England  colony.  On  their  arrival  in 
Virginia  the  clergyman  and  the  ex-Secretary 
seem  to  have  parted  company,  the  one  settling 
down  to  minister  in  spiritual  things  to  the  settlers 
on  Kent  Island,  in  Chesapeake  Bay  ;  the  other  to 
secure  through  his  influence  at  court  as  large  a 
portion  of  the  Virginians'  territory  as  he  possibly 
could,  including  Kent  Island  itself,  on  the  plea 
that  it  was  unoccupied  territory. 


48         THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON. 

It  is  not  without  good  and  sufficient  reason  that 
I  draw  attention  to  the  Newfoundland  experiences 
of  Sir  George  Calvert.  Of  the  Privy  Council,  to 
whom  had  been  sent  all  those  wonderful  accounts 
of  Newfoundland's  possibilities  as  a  field  for  lucra- 
tive investment  and  colonization,  Sir  George  was 
the  clerk.  That  fact  indeed  explains  all.  It  makes 
his  motives  perfectly  transparent.  Like  most  pub- 
lic men  of  his  age,  he  had  become  interested  in 
plans  for  colonizing.  Already  a  member  of  the 
Virginia  Company,  and  also  of  the  New  England 
Company,  he  bought  his  Newfoundland  property 
in  162 1,  when  he  had  apparently  no  more  expecta- 
tion of  ever  seeing  it  than  an  ordinary  citizen 
among  us  has  of  settling  in  Dahomey  or  Pekin  ; 
for  at  the  time  of  that  purchase  he  was  high  in 
the  royal  favor  as  a  principal  Secretary'  of  State, 
and  a  member  ostensibl}^  of  the  Anglican  Church. 
As  such  he  needed  no  sympathy  ;  he  desired  no 
protection  ;  he  was  a  victim  of  no  intolerance ;  he 
was  looking  for  no  place  of  refuge.  He  was  not 
in  any  sense  a  sufferer  from  the  fines  and  confisca- 
tions which  were  occasionally  inflicted  on  the 
obscure  and  unimportant  members  of  his  Church. 
On  the  contrary,  he  was  one  of  those  who  wore 
soft  clothing,  and  were  in  kings'  houses.     Yet  it 


THK  CHARTER  OF  AVALON.         49 

was  to  this  very  circumstance  he  owed  it  that  he 
had  become  a  colonial  landowner.  He  had  been 
anxious  to  eke  out  his  income,  all  too  slender  for 
his  requirements  as  a  courtier,  by  judicious  invest- 
ments abroad.  With  this  in  view,  he  had  pur- 
chased that  plantation  on  the  peninsula  which 
eventually  received  the  name  of  Avalon,  but 
whether  from  himself  or  another  is  unknown.  ^^ 

Having  acquired  his  transatlantic  property,  Cal- 
vert at  once  took  steps  to  develop  it  by  sending 
out  a  certain  Captain  Wynne  as  agent,  or  governor, 
with  twelve  men  under  him.  In  the  following 
year  he  dispatched  twenty-two  more  men,  under  the 
leadership  of  one  Daniel  Powell.  With  this  latter 
company  it  was  that  the  Rev.  Richard  James  went 
as  chaplain.  ^^ 

In  the  meantime,  political  affairs  in  England  had 
taken  such  a  turn,  that  Calvert  had  probably  begun 
to  think  of  Avalon,  not  only  as  a  region  bought  in 

^^  "The  name  Avalon  is  derived  from  Avalon  in  Somerset- 
shire, England,  the  traditional  site  of  the  first  preaching  of  the 
Gospel  in  Britain,  where  Avalonius  is  supposed  to  have  con- 
verted the  British  King  Lucius,  and  all  his  Court,  to  Christian- 
ity." The  Charter  of  Avalon  is  dated  1623.  See  Belknap, 
Vol.  II,  Page  365,  and  authorities  there  cited. 

^2  That  Calvert  himself  dated  his  letters  from  Ferryland  is  a 
presumption  against  his  having  given  Avalon  its  name.  That 
name  in  fact  described  the  whole  peninsula,  and  not  the  slice  of 
it  which  Calvert  bought. 


50        THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON. 

the  way  of  a  mere  business  speculation,  but  also  as 
a  place  of  refuge  in  his  declining  years,  and  as  a 
home  where  he  could  find  shelter  when  he  should 
be  put  out  of  the  stewardship.  The  marriage  nego- 
tiations had  evidently  failed.  With  the  return  of 
the  prince,  Calvert's  worst  fears  were  realized. 
Some  months  after  the  failure  of  the  scheme, 
Abbott,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  wrote  :  "  Secre- 
tary Calvert  hath  never  looked  merrily  since  the 
coming  of  the  Prince  out  of  Spain."  ^^  And  no 
wonder  !  He  was  a  ruined  man,  and  he  was  now 
contemplating  exile  as  a  painful  necessity.  To 
Avalon  his  thoughts  were  turning.  Under  these 
circumstances  it  was  manifestly  desirable  that  he 
should  have  a  better  title  to  his  property  than  that 
which  he  had  derived  from  Sir  William  Vaughan. 
Accordingly  he  now  had  his  grant  re-confirmed, 
and  passed  under  the  Great  Seal  of  England.  In 
doing  this  he  was  acting  wisely.  He  would  have, 
so  far  as  it  was  possible  to  obtain  it,  a  secure 
dwelling  place  which  none  could  take  away  from 
him.  On  the  seventh  of  April,  1623,  ^^^^  charter 
was  issued,  and  there  is  little  doubt  that  royal 
s)'mpathy  with  Calvert  in  his  misfortunes  explains 

^•■'From  Abbott  to  Sir  T.  Roe.  Roe  Letters,  Page  372. 
Quoted  by  Walpole  in  his  Noble  Authors,  and  by  Kennedy, 
Page  39. 


THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON.         5I 

satisfactorily  the  remarkably  favorable  terms  grant- 
ed to  him.^* 

This  charter  has,  so  we  are  informed,  a  unique 
interest  attached  to  it,  inasmuch  as  it  was  "  one  of 
the  earliest  instruments  prepared  as  a  basis  of  social, 
civil  and  religious  organization  of  English  colo- 
nists on  the  North  American  Coast."  ^''  Yet  after 
all  it  was  destitute  of  a  single  democratic  element. 
It  was  an  instrument  which  solely  looked  to  the 
establishment  of  ancient  feudalism  in  the  new 
world.  By  it  Sir  George  Calvert  became  absolute 
lord  of  all  persons  within  his  province,  clothed 
with  powers  greater  than  those  possessed  b}-  the 
King  of  England  himself,  the  nearest  approach  to 
them  being  the  powers  granted  by  William  the 
Conqueror  to  the  Counts  Palatine  of  Durham, 
Chester,  and  Kent.  In  fact,  Sir  George  Calvert's 
province  in  Newfoundland  was  confessedly  mod- 
elled after  the  ancient  feudal  palatinate  of  Durham  ; 
while  he  himself  was  declared  to  be  in  his  palati- 
nate, what  the  former  Prince  Bishops  of  Durham 
had  ever  been  in  theirs.  This  was  no  slio-ht  honor. 
Counts  Palatine  were  the  deputies  of  the  king, 
commissioned  to  act  in  his  name,  and  generall}-  to 

^^  Sloan  MSS,  170.     Vide  Prowse,  Page  131. 
^^Afd.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.  No.  20,  Wilhelni,  Page  129. 


52         THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON. 

be  his  vice-gerents.  Within  their  own  boundaries 
they  possessed  quasi  regal  rights  as  complete  as 
those  which  the  king  exercised  in  his  own  palace, 
and  hence  indeed  the  title  of  Palatinate  bestowed 
on  the  places  of  their  jurisdiction.  But  Calvert 
could  not  well  have  received  like  powers  with  those 
of  the  English  Counts  Palatine  without  having 
received  greater.  Durham  was  not  far  from  West- 
minster ;  whereas  an  ocean  rolled  between  the 
absolute  lord  of  Avalon  and  the  court  of  the  Eng- 
lish king.  It  was  precisely  this  danger  which  w^as 
pointed  out,  and  effectually  guarded  against,  when 
the  Maryland  Charter  was  under  consideration.^*^ 

^^  Co?isideratiofis  to  the  Patent  to  the  Lord  Baltimore  dat.  20 
J unij  Octavo  Car.     (1632). 

"There  is  intended  to  bee  granted  the  Liberties  of  a  County 
Palatine  and  there  is  noe  exception  of  Writts  of  Error  or  of  the 
last  appeale  to  the  King  as  by  Lawe  ought  to  bee. 
INCONVENIENCES. 

'  '  'That  the  Lord  Baltimore  hath  power  to  grant  any  part  in 
fee  to  whom  hee  please  which  may  bee  Aliens,  Savages,  or 
Enemies  of  the  Kingdome,  and  3'et  their  children  born  there 
shall  bee  denizens  by  express  words  of  the  Patent,  fol.  7  and  8. 

"It  is  inconvenient  that  the  Lord  Baltimore  should  have 
power  to  make  peace  or  entertaine  warre  with  any  att  his  or  his 
heires  pleasure  and  soe  to  engage  all  the  rest  of  the  English 
Colonies  (which  as  to  strangers  cannot  bee  distinguished  the 
One  Colonic  from  the  other)  by  his  and  his  heires  owne  volun- 
tary Acts  which  matter  is  of  that  importance  as  concernes  the 
utter  mine  or  essentiall  safety  of  the  whole  English  Plantation 
in  all  that  Country  of  America. 

"There  is  no  restraint  in  the  Patent  of  furnishing  the  Sav- 


THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON.         53 

To  a  certain  extent  this  menace  to  the  liberties 
of  the  settlers  existed  in  all  English  colonies.  The 
governors,  being  men  of  rank  and  fortune,  had 
generally  sufficient  influence  to  shield  themselves 
from  punishment  in  the  somewhat  improbable 
event,  considering  the  distance  from  the  mother 
country,  and  the  tedious  and  uncertain  means  of 
communication  and  transport  thither,  of  an  im- 
peachment at  home,  on  the  charge  of  playing  the 
tyrant.  Spain,  whose  colonial  experiences  had 
begun  earlier  than  those  of  England,  had  found  it 
necessary  "  to  hold  these  petty  tyrants  in  check  by 
means  of  regular  tribunals,   or  Royal  Audiences^ 

ages  with  Armes  &c  and  such  like  if  in  case  they  should  invade 
the  other  Colonies. 

"The  power  of  giving  Honors,  Lands,  Privileges,  and  other 
Franchises  to  such  as  will  take  of  him  will  bee  in  short  tyme  an 
Occasion  to  dispeople  the  King's  Colonic  and  to  people  his 
with  persons  of  all  sorts  whatsoever  from  the  other  Colonies  i^ 
Religion  Assertion  or  otherwise. 

"Royall  and  Imperiall  Power  which  is  granted  in  all  things 
of  Sovraignty  saving  only  an  Allegiance  to  the  King's  Majesty, 
to  the  Tvord  Baltimore  to  be  granted  to  any  Person  in  ffee  Sim- 
ple in  Places  soe  remote  and  where  the  King's  Subjects  are  soe 
neare  Neighbors  may  prove  very  dangerous  by  exalting  the 
One  and  decreasing  the  other,  the  Counsells  reliefe  and  Actions 
of  all  the  other  Colonies  beeing  to  depend  on  soe  great  distance 
as  England  from  Virginia,  and  lyord  Baltimore's  Colonie  hav- 
ing power  in  themselves  to  manage  their  affaires  free  from  all 
dependency  on  others. 
Archives  of  Maryland,  Council  Vol.  3,  Page  18. 


54         THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON. 

as  they  were  termed,  which,  composed  of  men  of 
character  and  learning,  might  interpose  the  arm  of 
the  law  or  at  least  the  voice  of  remonstrance,  for 
the  protection  of  both  colonist  and  native."  Here 
was  a  safeguard  wholly  wanting  in  Calvert's  case. 
How  necessary  such  a  safeguard  was,  the  hard 
fate  of  Vasqiiez  Nunez  de  Balboa,  the  illustrious 
discoverer  of  the  Pacific,  abundantly  shows  ;^^  for 
at  the  early  age  of  fort}'-two  he  was  beheaded 
through  jealousy  of  his  growing  reputation,  and  by 
an  extraordinary  abuse  of  his  power  on  the  part 
of  one  of  the  colonial  governors  of  Spain.  iVnd  it 
it  was  because  of  charges  brought  against  him  of 
similar  mal-administration  as  Governor-General  of 
India,  that  Warren  Hastings,  notwithstanding  his 
splendid  services  in  that  country,  was  impeached 
before  the  Lords  at  Westminster.  Nay,  even  in 
these  days  of  rapid  communication,  we  have  had 
in  the  doings  in  Africa  of  a  German  High  Com- 
missioner, a  signal  instance  of  what  a  petty  tyrant, 
living  at  a  distance  from  the  mother  countr}-,  can 
be  guilty  of  in  the  way  of  oppressive  dealings 
towards  those  unfortunate  enough  to  live  under 
his  rule.^^     Now  Calvert's  case  differed  in  nothing 

^^  Prescott,  Mexico,  Vol.  i.   Page  231. 

^^  Dr.   Carl  Peters,   sometime  German   High   Commissioner, 
and  a  well-known  African  explorer,  was  dismissed  from   the 


THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON.         55 

from  that  of  any  other  colonial  governor  save  in 
this  :  that  he  had  a  more  despotic  and  irresponsible 
position ;  for  in  the  case  of  a  controversy  between 
himself  and  his  subjects  no  appeal  could  be  taken 
to  any  British  court.  ^^  So  far  as  the  King  of  Eng- 
land could  do  it,  he  had  established  a  czar  in  the 
new  world. 

Knowing  Newfoundland  only  through  mislead- 
ing reports  Calvert  thought  at  once  of  taking  full 
advantage  of  his  opportunities,  and  beginning 
without  delay  the  work  of  reconstructing  his  shat- 
tered fortunes.  His  province  promised  abundant 
returns.  Unfortunately  he  was  to  pay  dearly  for 
his  experience.  With  life  politically  wrecked  in 
England,  entailing  the  loss  of  his  secretaryship, 
with  its  official  status,  accompanying  income,  and 
pleasant  associations  at  court,  there  was  trouble 
enough  for  one  day.  But  troubles  do  not  come 
singly.  Presently  evil  tidings  began  to  reach  him 
from  beyond  the  seas.  All  was  not  well  in  Avalon. 
His  choice  of  Wynne  and  Powell  as  his  stewards 
was  soon  to  be  recognized  as  a  most  unfortunate  one. 

German  Imperial  Service  in  April,  1896,  after  having  been  con- 
victed of    grossly    abusing  his  authority  in   being  guilty   of 
extreme  cruelty,  and  even  worse  offenses,  to  natives  while  he 
was  Commissioner. 
^^  Fiske,  Old  Virginia  and  Her  Neighbors^  Vol.  I,  Page  285. 


56        THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON. 

Both  men  had  their  counterpart  in  the  unjust 
steward  of  the  Gospel.  Sending  to  their  master 
glowing  reports  of  work  done,  and  predicting 
fruitful  harvests  in  the  near  future,  they  had  so 
lured  on  the  unwary  Sir  George,  that  upon  casting 
up  his  accounts  shortly  afterwards,  he  found  he 
had  spent  on  the  acquisition  of  his  estate,  and  on 
necessary  working  expenses,  between  twenty-five  and 
thirty  thousand  pounds.  It  was  an  immense  sum  to 
lose,  for  its  purchasing  value  was  far  greater  than  it 
is  now.  It  may  be  that  Wynne  and  Powell^  knowing 
they  had  got  all  they  were  likely  to  get  out  of  the 
unfortunate  ex-Secretary,  had  now  no  longer  any 
reason  to  hide  from  him  the  real  state  of  affairs. 
At  any  rate,  Calvert  soon  had  an  inkling  of  the 
truth.  His  colony  was  evidently  in  a  very  bad 
way.  He  had  been  putting  his  money  into  a  bag 
full  of  holes.  Thus  for  more  reasons  than  even  to 
find  a  place  of  refuge  for  himself  and  his  family, 
it  would  be  desirable  for  him  to  hasten  out  to  his 
Newfoundland  plantation. 

Calvert's  misfortunes  were  indeed  rapidly  multi- 
plying. One  cannot  help  deeply  sympathising 
with  him.  In  his  sorrows  he  reminds  us  of  Jacob, 
to  which  venerable  Hebrew  Patriarch,  as  having 
also  a  keen  eye  for  business,  I  may  not  inappropri- 


THE  CHARTER  OF  AVALON.         57 

ately  compare  him,  who,  when  an  old  and  worn 
out  man,  and  feeling  that  God's  hand  had  gone  out 
against  him,  exclaimed  in  bitterness  of  soul,  "  All 
these  things  are  against  me."  ^^  Nor  does  the  par- 
allel end  here ;  for  as  Jacob  shortly  afterwards 
prepared  to  go  into  Egypt  under  distressing  cir- 
cumstances, so  Calvert  in  great  distress  made  his 
preparations  to  go  to  Newfoundland,  there  to  spend, 
as  he  supposed,  the  remainder  of  his  days.^^  He^ 
too,  would  seek  corn  in  Egypt.  Yet  when  it  came 
to  the  point,  he  was  more  than  loath  to  go.  Will- 
ingly would  he  have  avoided  the  journey ;  but 
necessity  is  a  hard  master.  To  his  intimate  friend, 
Sir  Thomas  Wentworth,  who  could  not  understand 
why  he  should  go  at  all,  he  explained  that  he  went 
in  order  to  save  his  investments.  I  "  must  either 
go  "  he  said,  "  and  settle  it  in  better  order,  or  else 
give  it  over  and  lose  all  the  charges  I  have  been  at 
hitherto,  for  other  men  to  build  their  fortunes 
upon.  And  I  had  rather  be  esteemed  a  fool  by 
some,  for  the  hazard  of  one  month's  journe}^,  than 
to  prove  myself  one  certainly  for  six  years  past,  if 
the  business  be  now  lost  for  want  of  a  little  pains 
and  care."  It  is  the  word  of  a  man  who  says,  Go 
I  must ;  there  is  nothing  else  left  for  me  to  do. 

'^'^  Genesis  xlii,  26. 

^^  Prowse,  Page  132.     Neill,  Terra  Maries^  Page  39. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

LORD  BALTIMORE  (SIR  GEORGE  CAL- 
VERT) IN  NEWFOUNDLAND. 

1627-1629. 

"Great  Sheba's  wise  queen  travel'd  far  to  see 
Whether  the  truth  did  with  report  agree  ; 
You,  by  report  persuaded,  laid  out  much, 
Then  wisely  came  to  see  if  it  were  such  ; 
You  came  and  saw,  admired  what  you  had  seen 
With  like  success  as  the  wise  Sheba  queen. 
If  every  sharer  here  would  take  like  pain, 
This  land  would  soon  be  peopled  to  their  gain." 

— Robert  Hayman. 

When  Lord  Baltimore  eventually  sailed  for  his 
new  home  at  Avalon,  in  harmony  with  his  recent 
acknowledgement  that  he  was  of  the  Roman  obedi- 
ence, he  took  with  him  two  priests  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  Church.^  It  is  not  quite  clear  in  what 
capacity  these  gentlemen  accompanied  the  expedi- 
tion, for  the  Rev.  Richard  James^  was  already  in 
the  field  as  the  settled  pastor  of  the  flock  at  Ferry- 

^  Founders  of  Maryland,  Neill,  Page  41. 
^  Terra  Mariae,  Neill,  Page  46,  note.    See  also  Athenae  Ox- 
oniensis,  and  Gentleman's  Magazine,  I'jt'j  and  1768, 


LORD   BAI.TIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND.         59 

land.  They  could  therefore  hardly  expect  to  find 
much  priestly  work  to  do  among  the  colonists, 
especially  as  but  few,  if  any,  of  their  faith  were  to 
be  found  among  them.  It  is  probable,  however, 
that  lyord  Baltimore  regarded  his  priests  more  in 
the  light  of  private  chaplains,  while  they,  with 
that  apostolic  zeal  which  has  so  often  distinguished 
Roman  Catholic  missionaries,  chiefly  thought  of 
themselves  as  destined  for  the  spiritual  welfare  of 
the  "barbarous  people"  of  whom  their  patron's 
charter  made  mention. 

On  Lord  Baltimore's  arrival  at  his  new  home  in 
Avalon,  he  was  at  last  in  a  position  to  judge  for 
himself  of  the  capabilities  of  his  adopted  country. 
The  whole  province,  of  which  he  had  but  a  small 
strip  on  the  southeast  coast,  is  only  one  sixth  larger 
than  the  eastern  shore  of  Maryland,  with  Delaware 
included.  Containing  some  45,000  square  miles  in 
a  country  rather  larger  than  Ireland,  it  is  the 
least  profitable  part  of  the  whole  island.  What- 
ever may  be  the  agricultural  prospects  of  the  inte- 
rior of  the  western  portion,  they  are  certainly  not 
shared  by  Avalon.  Prophets  indeed  predict  that 
it  will  one  day  be  the  Chili  of  North  America,  so 
great  is  its  mineral  wealth.  But  Baltimore  was 
not   looking   for   minerals.      All   his  preparations 


6o         LORD  BALTIMORE   IN    NEWFOUNDLAND. 

were  for  farming ;  but  farming,  in  a  country-  where 
great  boulders  everywhere  cover  the  ground,  and 
where  even  to  make  a  small  garden,  soil  has  not 
seldom  to  be  brought  from  a  distance,  as  the  Ger- 
man vine  growers  carry  the  soil  for  their  vineyards 
on  the  Rhine,  is  never  likely  to  prove  either  a  ver}^ 
lucrative  or  a  very  popular  undertaking.  Yet  such 
is  Avalon.  In  all  parts  of  it  there  are  immense 
tracts  appropriately  termed  "  barrens,'  covered  only 
with  stunted  pines  from  which  masses  of  lichens 
hang  like  banners.  No  sign  of  animal  life  is  to 
be  seen.  No  song  of  bird  is  heard.  Silence 
reigns.  The  great  boulders  borne  hither  ages  ago 
on  the  ice  floes,  are  all  around,  whilst  at  intervals 
the  solid  rock  breaks  through  the  thin  layers  of 
soil  or  moss,  as  if  to  proclaim  its  universal  pre- 
sence, and  to  bid  defiance  to  the  farmer  and  his 
plough.'^ 

Elsewhere,  northwards  and  westwards,  it  is  dif- 
ferent. Broad  acres  ;  noble  forests  ;  mighty  rivers  ; 
lakes  as  beautiful  as  Como,  Loch  Lomond  or  Win- 
dermere, with  scenes  of  exquisite  beauty,  are 
features  of  every  landscape.  But  the  home  of 
Baltimore  was  on  the  poor,  stonn  swept,  eastern 
seaboard,  where  at  certain  seasons  a  cold,  clammy 

•*The  author  knows  Avalon  well. 


LORD  BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND.         6 1 

fog  makes  life  miserable ;  a  fog  so  thick  and  blind- 
ing, that  once  upon  a  time  the  penguin  on  Bacca- 
lieu  Island,  just  off  the  coast,  were  protected  by 
law  because  their  cries  served  to  protect  vessels 
from  being  dashed  upon  the  rocks,  and  where,  to 
serve  the  same  purpose,  in  the  fortress  of  St.  John's 
a  warning  gun  was  fired  every  half  hour. 

And  yet  when  Lord  Baltimore  first  saw  Avalon 
in  the  August  of  1627,  ^^^  things  conspired  to  give 
it  favor  in  his  eyes.  The  weather  is  at  that  season 
delightful ;  the  growth  of  vegetation  rapid  ;  while 
the  beautiful  blue  skies  and  still  bluer  water 
remind  one  of  the  scenery  of  southern  Europe. 
Strawberries,  raspberries  and  the  much  prized  cap- 
illaire  berries,  with  many  others,  are  to  be  found  in 
the  greatest  profusion,  while  the  beauty  and  end- 
less variety  of  the  native  flowers  blossoming  in  the 
woods,  on  the  ponds,  and  upon  the  hills,  are 
remarkable.  Indeed,  were  it  not  for  the  occasional 
visit  of  an  iceberg,  as  swept  along  by  the  current, 
stately  and  majestically,  within  sight  of  the  coast, 
to  be  driven  aground  at  last,  there  to  remain  for 
weeks  a  silent  witness  to  the  power  of  the  frost  in 
its  northern  home,  there  would  be  little  to  indicate 
the  storms  and  severity  of  winter.  All  is  so  very 
beautiful. 


62         LORD   BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND. 

Newfoundland  scenery  has  in  fact  a  charm  which 
is  peculiarly  its  own.  The  sea,  constantly  chang- 
ing, finds  there  its  most  variable  moods  and  its 
greatest  extremes.  How  soft  and  limpid  the  waters 
appear  on  a  calm  summer  evening,  when  the  gor- 
geous colors  of  the  setting  sun  are  reflected  in  them; 
how  still  and  motionless,  with  the  little  craft  scat- 
tered about  upon  them,  looking  like  sea  birds 
taking  rest.  Then  again,  how  wild  and  boisterous, 
and  yet  how  grand  the  waves,  when,  with  sullen 
roar,  they  rush,  crowned  with  foam,  upon  the 
rocks,  which  seem  contemptuously  challenging 
them  to  do  their  worst.  Again,  how  the  icicles 
cling  to  the  bold  headlands,  when  winter's  hand 
catches  the  frozen  spray  and  holds  it  in  an  iron 
grasp,  and  the  waters  out  to  seaward,  like  lakes 
amid  the  white  expanse  of  the  ice  fields,  are  of  a 
more  transparent  blue  than  ever,  as  they  stand  out 
against  the  dazzling  white  of  ice  and  snow,  which 
stretches  away  to  the  far-distant  horizon.  Like 
mighty  dissolving  views  the  changing  scenes  pass 
before  our  eyes. 

For  Baltimore's  purpose  the  time  of  his  visit 
was  the  very  worst  possible.  He  did  not  realize 
that  he  was  looking  on  Newfoundland  in  holiday 
attire,  and  he  came  at  once  to  the  conclusion  that 


LORD  BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND.         63 

it  was  a  land  favorable  '*  to  sett  and  sow."  Then 
after  a  stay,  all  too  brief,  he  returned  to  England, 
full  of  plans  for  the  future.  He  reached  England 
in  November.^  Early  in  the  following  year  he  had 
again  embarked,  taking  with  him  a  second  wife, 
his  family,  with  the  exception  of  Cecilius,^  his 
eldest  son,  the  stay-at-home  member  of  the  family  ; 
and  another  Roman  Catholic  priest.  They  were 
all  hopeful  and  enthusiastic.  How  could  they 
well  be  otherwise  ?  They  were  about  to  retrieve 
heavy  losses,  and  all  things  seemed  favorable. 
Alas !  the  glamour  was  soon  rudely  dispelled,  and 
they  saw  things  as  they  were.  True,  there  were 
days,  and  even  nights,  in  the  autumn,  when  the 
picturesque  beauty  of  nature  compelled  their  admi- 
ration as  when  they  first  looked  upon  it.  Then 
came  the  bright,  clear  days  of  winter,  when  the 
sky  was  clearer  than  they  had  ever  seen  it,  and  the 
moon  like  silver  and  the  stars  like  diamonds  shone 
with  a  lustre  unknown  to  them  before.  During 
the  calm,  frosty  nights,  they  saw  the  Northern 
lights,  flashing  with  a  quivering  brilliancy,  rapid 
as  lightning,  beautiful  as  the  sunset,  turning  night 
into  day,  and  making  fairyland  of   all   the  country 


'^Md.  Hist.  Soc.  F.  P.,  No.  20.     Wilhelm,  Page  134. 
'^  Founders  of  Maryland,  Neill,  Page  41. 


64         LORD   BALTIMORE   IN    NEWFOUNDLAND. 

round  them,  as  well  as  of  all  the  sky  above  them. 
All  this  was  inspiring.  But  on  scenery  they  could 
neither  live  nor  prosper.  Soon  came  dark  days 
and  storms,  and  the  mid- winter  weather  when  the 
ground  was  deeply  frozen.  Was  it  any  wonder,  ere 
that  first  winter  had  fled  and  the  dismal  Newfound- 
land spring  had  come,  that  all  hope  had  completely 
forsaken  them  ?  They  had  not  seen,  neither  had 
their  fathers  told  them,  what  winter  was  in  Amer- 
ica under  the  Northern  lights. 

We  need  not  marvel  then,  that  on  August  19th, 
1629,  ^^ss  than  two  years  afterwards.  Lord  Balti- 
more was  upon  his  knees  thanking  the  king  for 
the  loan  of  a  "  faire  shipp "  to  take  him  away. 
His  letter  to  King  Charles  describing  his  unfor- 
tunate condition  and  the  miserable  state  of  his 
plantation  is  truly  pathetic.  He  had  met  with 
differences  and  incumbrances  as  could  no  longer 
be  resisted.  For  his  majesty  might  be  pleased 
to  understand  that  he  had  there  found  by  a  too 
dearly  bought  experience,  which  other  men  for 
their  private  interests  always  concealed  from  him, 
that  from  the  midst  of  October  to  the  midst  of 
May  there  is  a  sad  face  of  winter  upon  all  this 
land,  both  sea  and  land  so  frozen  for  the  most  part 
of  the  time,  as  they  were  not  penetrable,  and  his 


I^ORD   BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND.  65 

house  had  become  a  hospital.  Out  of  one  hundred 
persons  fifty  had  been  sick  at  a  time,  himself  in- 
cluded, and  nine  or  ten  had  died.  Hereupon  he 
had  strong  temptations  to  leave  all  proceedings  in 
plantations,  and  being  much  decayed  in  his  strength, 
to  retire  himself  to  his  former  quiet ;  but  his  incli- 
nation carrying  him  naturally  to  these  kind  of 
works,  and  not  knowing  how  better  to  employ  the 
poor  remainder  of  his  days  than,  with  other  good 
subjects,  to  further  the  best  he  may  the  enlarging 
his  majesty's  empire  in  this  part  of  the  world,  he 
is  determined  to  commit  this  place  to  fishermen 
that  are  able  to  encounter  hard  weather  and  storms, 
and  to  remove  himself  with  some  forty  persons  to 
his  majesty's  dominion  of  Virginia,  where,  if  his 
majesty  will  please  to  grant  him  a  precinct  of  land 
with  such  privileges  as  the  king  his  father,  his 
gracious  master,  was  pleased  to  grant  him  here,  he 
will  endeavor  with  the  utmost  of  his  power  to 
deserve.*^ 

It  is  a  pitiable  story  this,  which  he  concludes  by 
making  request  for  land  in  Virginia.  He  now 
knew  the  island  better.  He  knew  Avalon  better. 
And  now  having  told  the  king  that  he  had  deter- 
mined to  commit  the  place  to  fishermen''  who  could 

*  Archives  of  Maryland,  Council,  Vol.  3,  Pps.  15,  16. 

■^  Founders  of  Maryland,  Neill,  Page  46,  quoting  State  Papers. 


66         LORD  BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND. 

endure  the  storms  and  bad  weather  better  than  he 
could,  without  awaiting  even  an  answer  to  his 
appeal,  leaving  his  priests  behind,^  or  sending 
them  back  to  England  with  his  children,  he  sailed 
away  with  his  wife  and  dependants,  and,  as  it 
would  appear,  the  Rev.  Richard  James,  to  the 
settlements  on  the  banks  of  the  James  River  in 
Virginia. 

Of  all  those  who  had  sought  to  colonize  the 
country,  he  had  been  the  least  successful,  his  work 
the  most  ephemeral.  A  Newfoundland  clergyman 
of  the  present  day,  and  former  Rector  of  Ferryland, 
once  wrote  to  me  in  answer  to  inquiries :  "I 
cannot  remember  having  heard  his  name  men- 
tioned. I  know  not  where  his  house  stood  and,  as 
far  as  I  know,  no  relic  whatever  remains.  Well 
may  the  historian  of  Newfoundland  write  :  "  None 
of  the  great  patentees,  from  Gilbert  to  Baltimore, 
exercised  the  least  permanent  influence  on  the 
history  of  the  colony ;  least  of  all,  Baltimore ;  he 
came  and  stayed  an  uneasy,  discontened  stay  of 
two  seasons ;  all  his  company  of  forty  persons  left 
the  colony  together,  and  then  his  Lordship  and  his 

^  The  Southampton  records  show  that  one  of  Lord  Balti- 
more's priests  came  home  under  an  assumed  name  in  August, 
1629.  See  Southampton  Municipal  Archives,  Book  of  Exami- 
nations, Informatio7is  and  Depositions,  No  42,  A.D.,  1622- 1643. 


LORD  BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND.         67 

seminar^^  priests  and  his  noble  retinue  and  his 
Welsh  colonists,  vanish  from  our  annals,"  ^  From 
beginning  to  end,  his  had  been  an  unfortunate 
adventure. 

It  is  perhaps  only  fair  to  the  colony  to  state  that 
but  a  few  years  afterwards — October  2d,  1639 — Sir 
David  Kirk,  writing  to  Archbishop  I^aud,  from 
Lord  Baltimore's  own  homestead  at  Ferryland, 
upon  the  possession  of  which  he  had  recently 
entered,  as  a  gift  from  the  king,  gave  a  very  dif- 
ferent account  of  the  climate  from  that  which 
Baltimore  had  sent  to  the  king.  "  Out  of  one 
hundred  persons  they  took  over,"  Kirk  tells  the 
Archbishop,  "  only  one  died  of  sickness.  The  air 
of  Newfoundland  agrees  perfectly  with  all  God's 
creatures,  except  Jesuits  and  schismatics.  A  great 
mortality  amongst  the  former  tribe  so  affrighted 
my  Lord  of  Baltimore  that  he  utterly  deserted  the 
country."  As  between  these  two  accounts  of  the 
climate  there  is  no  doubt  that  the  latter  is  correct. 
There  is  no  healthier  climate  known  than  that 
of  Newfoundland.  It  agrees  perfectly  well  with 
everyone.  ^^ 

No   Lord    Baltimore    ever    saw   Newfoundland 

^Prowse,  2nd  Edition,  Pages  112,  113. 
10  Terra  Mariae,  Neill,  Page  103,  note. 


68         LORD   BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND. 

again.  The  family  doubtless  heartily  wished  they 
had  never  had  anything  to  do  with  it.  The  Balti- 
mores  did  not,  however,  resign  the  hope  of  getting 
some  of  their  money  back  again,  and  long  after- 
Avards  they  still  considered  themselves  as  the  right- 
ful Lords  of  Avalon.^' 

But  as  the  first  Lord  Baltimore  turned  his  back 
upon  his  unfortunate  colonial  adventure,  another 
chapter  of  his  life  was  closed.  Again  all  his  plans 
were  unsettled.  Again  he  had  failed.  Again  he 
was  a  wanderer  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  He  now 
set  his  face  southwards.  It  might  be  that  in  Vir- 
ginia, or  in  the  parts  beyond,  he  could  find  for 
himself  a  home  and  a  resting  place  on  earth.  But 
in  what  had  he  failed  ?  What  was  it  that  he  had 
unsuccessfully  attempted  to  do  in  that  sea  girt  isle 
beside  the  north  Atlantic  ?  For  what  did  he  buy 
his  jDlantation  there  ?  For  what  did  he  send  there 
three  successive  expeditions  of  emigrants?  And 
finally,  for  what  did  he  himself  seek  to  settle  there? 

The  nature  of  his  attempts  precludes  any  suppo- 
sition that  he  failsd  to  found  a  colony  w^here  the 
profession  of  religion  might  be  free.  For  certainly 
I  may  without  fear  of  contradiction,  quote  Boz- 
man's  words  as  signally  applicable  to  Calvert  up  to 

"  Archives  of  Maryland,  Council,  Pa^e  42. 


LORD  BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND.         69 

this  time  :  "  Thus  far,  then,  we  have  not  yet  found 
that  either  religious  persecution  or  political  oppres- 
sion, or  even  the  glory  of  propagating  the  Christian 
faith,  however  much  talked  of,  were  really  and 
truly  the  prime  and  original  motives.  "^^  of  his  colo- 
nization schemes.  In  fact  at  the  very  time  when 
Sir  George  Calvert  bought  his  Newfoundland 
property,  he  was  a  professing  Anglican,  and  during 
all  the  six  years  that  he  was  an  absentee  landlord 
his  one  idea  seems  to  have  been  to  make  money  out 
of  the  estate  ;  while  during  his  less  than  two  year's 
residence  in  Newfoundland  his  time  seems  to  have 
been  equally  divided  between  obtaining  a  satisfac- 
tory answer  to  these  two  problems  :  First,  how  he 
was  to  get  his  money  back  again ;  and  secondly, 
how  he  and  his  family  were  to  get  out  of  the 
country  to  some  more  hospitable  land. 

If  it  had  been  ever  Lord  Baltimore's  intention  to 
fotmd  a  place  of  refuge  from  persecution  it  is 
evident  that  this  was  not  known  to  his  contem- 
poraries. Indeed  the  Rev.  Erasmus  Stourton, 
was  so  little  aware  of  the  fact  as  seriously  to 
complain  to  the  king  that  the  priests  at  Ferry- 
land  said  mass  every  Sunday  in  the  ample  man- 

i^Bozraan,  Page  156. 


JO         LORD    BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND. 

ner  used  in  Spain.  '''  Stourton's  religious  zeal 
seems  to  have  been  of  the  sort  that  strains 
at  gnats  and  swallows  camels.  It  was  not 
apparently  the  having  mass  that  disturbed  his 
spirit,  but  the  having  it  openly.  But  Lord  Balti- 
more's offence  does  not  seem  to  have  gone  be)'ond 
having  mass  in  his  own  house,  for  there  was  no 
chapel  of  the  Roman  Church  in  Avalon  till  the 
establishment  of  the  French  in  Placentia  in  1662, 
more  than  a  generation  later.  But  Stourton  v/as 
so  deeply  moved  that  he  appealed  unto  Caesar. 
Was  it  possible  that  the  king  did  not  know  of  the 
doings  of  Lord  Baltimore's  priests  at  Ferryland? 
Stourton's  action  was  deemed  so  serious  by  Balti- 

^'*  Prowse,  Page  loi,  note.  Penn  in  1708  brought  the  same 
charge  against  the  Secretary  of  his  colony.  He  was  perfectly 
willing  that  Roman  Catholics  should  have  niass  in  their  own 
private  houses  but  he  objected  to  his  Secretary  allowing  "Pub- 
lic Mass."  See  Fisher,  Men,  Women  and  Manners  in  Colonial 
Times,  Vol.  II,  Pages  220-223.  "I^i  i704  there  was  a  com- 
plaint that  mass  was  celebrated  in  the  Popish  Chaj^el  at  St. 
Mary's  in  Maryland  when  the  county  court  was  holding  its 
sessions  there.  For  this  too  public  exhibition  of  tlie  Roman 
ceremonial  the  chapel  was  ordered  to  be  closed  by  the  sheriff, 
and  the  Roman  Catholics  were  informed  b}'  the  Governor.  "You 
might,  methinks,  be  content  to  live  quietly  as  you  may,  and 
let  the  exercise  of  your  superstitious  vanities  be  confined  to 
yourselves,  without  proclaiming  them  at  public  times  in  public 
places."  Stourton  was  therefore  in  line  with  later  public 
opinion  on  this  subject — an  opinion,  however,  which  I  cannot 
commend. 


LORD   BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND.         7 1 

more,  that  he  sought  to  justif}'  himself  by  a 
personal  letter  to  Charles.  He  need  not  have  done 
so,  for  although  in  Newfoundland  Stourton  was 
apparentl}'  popular,  in  England  he  was  regarded 
as  a  busybody  in  other  men's  matters.^*  It  is, 
however,  quite  clear  that  not  onl)-  Stourton,  but 
Lord  Baltimore  himself,  must  have  been  entirely 
ignorant  of  the  colony  having  been  founded  as  a 
seed  plot  of  religious  libert}' ;  otherwise,  how  readi- 
ly would  Lord  Baltimore  have  replied,  "  Yes, 
I  ha\'e  mass  here,  and  that  openly  ;  but  what  am  I 
here  for  ?  Is  it  not  that,  free  from  religious  bigotry 
and  intolerance,  I  ma}'  worship  God  according  to 
my  conscience?  How  came  those  emigrants  of 
the  English  Church  and  that  clergyman  there? 
Sir  George  Calvert  himself  had  sent  them.  He 
had  in  truth  actually  petitioned  the  Archbishops  of 
Canterbury  and  York  to  use  their  influence  in 
securing  just  such  emigrants.^''  Now  a  nran  who 
is  fleeing  from  persecution  does  not  ordinaril)-  ask 
his  persecutors  to  colonize  the  place  of  his  refuge 
with  their  own  followers.  Elijah  fleeing  from 
Jezebel  did  not  ask  that  some  of  Baal's  worshippers, 
and  a  priest  or  two,  might  be  allowed  to  come  and 

•'See    Governor  Robert    Hayman's    Quod/ibets,  quoted   by 
Neill,  Terra  Maries,  Page  44. 
"^'^Md.  Hist.  Soc.  F.  P.,  No.  20.     Wilhelm,  Page  130. 


72         LORD   BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND. 

live  with  him  on  Mount  Carmel.  But  this  is  pre- 
cisely what  we  must  credit  Baltimore  with  doing 
on  his  Newfoundland  plantation,  if  he  had  secured 
it  as  a  refuge  for  Roman  Catholics  who  were,  so 
we  are  dramatically  told,  being  "  hounded  from 
every  hundred  in  the  three  kingdoms/^ 

But  why  say  more  ?  Even  if  at  the  time  of  ac- 
quiring his  Newfoundland  property  Lord  Balti- 
more had  been  openly  a  member  of  the  Roman 
Church,  the  case  is  in  no  wise  altered.  The  Roman 
Catholics  had  never  been  more  hopeful ;  their  pros- 
pects had  never  been  brighter.  Their  conduct  at 
the  coming  of  the  Armada  had  done  much  to  reha- 
bilitate them  in  the  eyes  of  their  country-men  as 
good  citizens,  for  they  had  shown  themselves  in 
that  great  crisis  as  Englishmen  first  and  Romanists 
afterw^ards.  Much  of  the  irritation  and  resentment 
aroused  against  them  in  Queen  Elizabeth's  time, 
had,  in  consequence  of  their  patriotic  conduct,  died 
away.  There  was  something  in  the  nature  of  a  re- 
action going  on.  King  James  had  never  been  a 
rabid  anti-Romanist,  neither  was  King  Charles. 
Besides,  ere  Baltimore  left  England,  there  was  a 
queen  of  his  own  faith.  What  object,  then,  could 
he   have    in    exiling  himself?     The   Roman   faith 

J6y7/</.  Hist.  Soc.  F.  P.,  No.  iS,  Johnson,  Page  9. 


LORD  BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND.         "] ^^ 

was  rapidly  becoming  fashionable.^''  A  woman  of 
rank  is  recorded  as  having  apologized  to  Arch- 
bishop Laud  for  leaving  the  Anglican  church  for 
the  Roman,  giving  as  her  reason  that,  as  she  hated 
crowds,  she  wanted  to  get  in  before  the  crush 
came.^^  It  had  even  been  foretold  by  one  familiar 
with  the  court  circle,  that  had  the  Spanish  mar- 
riage negotiations  succeeded,  many  would  have  fal- 
len "away  from  the  Church  of  England,  as  fall 
withered  leaves  in  the  autumn."  ^^  Small  necessity 
existed,  therefore,  for  the  planting  of  such  a  colony. 
It  is  quite  true  that  persecuting  laws  were  on  the 
statute  books  of  England  which  rendered  the  Ro- 
man Catholics  at  any  moment  liable  to  persecution 
and  imprisonment,  but  for  the  matter  of  that  they 
are  there  still.  A  law  of  Edward  I  or  Henr}^  VIII 
may  at  this  moment  be  pleaded  in  court  with  as 
much  authority  as  a  law  made  under  Queen  Vic- 
toria. Moreover  a  section  of  the  Catholic  Emanci- 
pation Act  of   1829  provides   "that  nothing  con- 

^■^ '  'There  is  great  complaint  of  the  increase  of  Popery  every- 
where." Chamberlain  to  Carlton,  February  loth,  1620.  See 
Neill,  Terra  Matics,  Page  23,  note. 

^®  The  claim  of  the  Church  of  Rome  to  the  Exeirise  of 
Religious  Tole^'ation  during  the  Proprietary  Government  of 
Maryland  examined.  By  Joshia  F.  Polk,  Washington,  1846, 
Page  7. 

^^  Letter  from  John  Chamberlain,  Esq.  to  Sir  Dudley  Carle- 
ton,  April  19th,  1623. 


74         LORD  BALTIMORE    IN    NEWFOUNDLAND. 

tained  in  this  Act  shall  be  held  to  legalize  in  any 
way  the  residence  in  the  United  Kingdom  of  any 
member  of  any  religious  body  of  men,"  and  further 
enacts  "  that  upon  information  sworn  before  any 
two  of  His  Majesty's  Justices  of  the  Peace,  the  Sec- 
retary of  State  may  expel  such  member  of  a  religious 
order  from  the  country  within  forty-eight  hours." 
The  situation  therefore  is  this :  All  the  religious 
orders,  and  the  thousands  of  Dominican  and  Fran- 
ciscan Tertiaries  now  in  England,  are  liable  to 
summary  expulsion  at  any  time.  Yet  Cardinal 
Vaughan  of  Westminster,  in  a  pastoral  letter  on 
the  occasion  of  the  Queen's  jubilee  in  1897,  took 
occasion  to  say  to  his  people,  "  Our  highest  and 
most  religious  cause  for  thanksgiving  is  to  be  found 
in  the  growth  of  the  Catholic  Church  under  the 
English  aegis  of  civil  and  religious  libert)'.  Anti- 
quated restrictions  and  disabilities  have,  during  her 
IMajesty's  Reign,  given  place  to  freedom  of  speech 
and  action,  the  law  safe  guarding  the  reputation, 
person,  and  property  of  all.  The  people  of  Eng- 
land have  said  :  "  We  are  free-traders,  and  open 
wide  our  markets  to  the  world.  If  you  possess 
religious  truths  and  medicines  that  heal  the  soul, 
come,  preach  and  administer  them  as  you  will." 
More  recently  still  Archbishop  Ireland,  of  St.  Paul, 


LORD  BALTIMORE    IN   NEWFOUNDLAND.  75 

Minn.,  addressing  the  Roman  Catholic  Union 
Society  of  Great  Britain  on  June  27,  1899,  said  that 
"  the  liberty  granted  by  England  to  Roman  Cathol- 
icism would,  he  believed,  greatly  influence  the 
nations  of  the  world."  ^'^  It  was  not  altogether  dis- 
similar in  James'  reign.  Certainly  the  first  Lord 
Baltimore  did  not  leave  England  on  account  of 
the  laws  against  Romanism.  There  is  in  fact  not 
one  word  of  his  which  implies  that  he  went  to 
Newfoundland  because  of  any  religious  differences 
or  conscientious  difficulties  at  all.  But  if  any  proof 
of  the  entirely  non-religious  character  of  his  under- 
taking were  lacking,  that  proof  would  be  found  in 
his  dismissing  his  priests  and  making  his  free 
choice  of  Virginia  as  the  scene  of  his  next  venture  ; 
of  all  places  in  the  world  the  most  undesirable,  and 
indeed  impossible,  for  the  purposes  of  a  Roman 
Catholic  colony.  That  one  act  alone  in  his  life 
should  shatter  forever  the  theory  of  his  seeking  to 
found  a  colony  as  a  refuge  for  the  victims  of 
intolerance.  Virginia  was,  be  it  always  remem- 
bered, the  very  hotbed  of  Anglicanism,  the  only 
spot  in  America  where  the  people  were  more  Eng- 
lish than  the  English  themselves,  and  where 
Churchmen  were  more  loyal  to  their  Church  than 

"'^^ Baliimore  Sun,  June  28,  1899. 


76         LORD   BALTIMORE   IN    NEWFOUNDLAND. 

they  were  in  Canterbury^  or  York.  Yet  it  was  to 
this  place  of  all  others  that  Lord  Baltimore  turned 
when  Florida,  with  her  Roman  Catholic  associa- 
tions, would  have  opened  her  doors  gladly  ;  when 
Mexico,  more  Roman  still,  would  have  done  the 
like ;  and  when  there  was  hardly  a  place  in  all 
the  world  but  would  have  been  more  suitable  for 
his  purpose. 


CHAPTER  V. 

LORD  BALTIMORE  IN  VIRGINIA. 

1629. 

Their  tents  are  pitched,  their  spades  have  broke  the  soil, 

The  strong  oak  thunders  as  it  topples  down, 
Their  lily-handed  youths  essay  the  toil, 

That  from  the  forest  rends  its  ancient  crown. 
Where  are  your  splendid  halls,  which  ladies  tread. 
Your  lordly  boards  with  every  luxury  spread, 

Virginian  sires — ye  men  of  old  renown  ? 
Though  few  and  faint,  your  ever-living  chain 

Holds  in  its  grasp  two  worlds,  across  the  surging  main. 

— IvYDiA  SiGOURNEY  *'  Pocahontas." 

When  Lord  Baltimore,  newly  arrived  from  the 
bleak  shores  of  Avalon,  in  the  early  part  of  Octo- 
ber, 1629,  saw  for  the  first  time  the  banks  of  the 
James,  he  must  have  felt  as  did  Lot  of  old,  when 
first  he  saw  the  beautiful  vale  of  Jordan,  well 
watered  everywhere  and  like  the  garden  of  the 
Lord.  Certainly  Virginia  presented  a  striking  con- 
trast to  Avalon.  The  month  of  October  is  the 
beautiful  month  for  woodland  scenery  throughout 
this  Western  continent,  and  as  Lord  Baltimore  and 
his  company  sailed  along  as  far  as  James  City,  the 


78  LORD    RALTIMORK    IN    VIRGINIA. 

principal  settlement  of  the  Virginians,  and  contain- 
in<(  with  its  adjacent  plantations  about  three  thou- 
sand settlers,  they  saw  the  trees  in  all  their  varied 
shades  of  green  and  brown,  bright  crimson  and  gor- 
i^^eons  pnrple,  forming  for  them,  as  they  passed  up 
the  river,  an  avenue  of  wondrous  beauty.  Even 
the  least  observant  among  them  must  have  been 
charmed.  The  fields  were  not  all  harvested.  In 
some  the  corn  was  yet  ripening.  Orchards  w^ere 
still  bearing  their  fruit.  On  either  side  of  the  river, 
fair  pasture  lands  stretched  afar.  All  was  very- 
good.  What  could  man  need  more  ?  Why  go  fur- 
ther? Here  was  a  country  wdiich  might  claim  the 
"  prerogati\'e  over  the  most  pleasant  places  known, 
for  large  and  majestic  navigable  rivers  ;  for  beauti- 
ful mountains,  plains,  hills,  valleys ;  for  rivulets 
and  brooks  running  most  pleasantly  into  a  fair  ba\', 
encompassed,  except  at  the  mouth,  with  such  fruit- 
ful and  delightsome  land,  that  heaven  and  earth 
seemed  never  to  have  agreed  better  to  frame  a 
place  for  man's  commodious  and  delightful  habita- 
tion, were  it  fully  cultivated  and  inhabited  by  in- 
dustrious people."  '  Avalon  could  not  rival  this. 
At  last  Lord  Baltimore  had  found  a  place,  such  as 
he  had  dreamed  of,  where  he  could  build  his  home 

'  vSniith,  History  of  Virginia,  Book  i,  P.  114. 


LORD    BALTIMORE    IN    VIRGINIA.  79 

and  permanently  settle  down.  Here  his  fairest 
hopes  might  be  realized  and  fortune  prove  no 
longer  fickle. 

From  the  acting  governor,  John  Pott,  and  the 
various  officials  of  the  colony  the  travelers  received 
a  kindly  welcome.^  It  is  almost  unnecessary  to  say 
this.  The  Virginians  of  today  are  famous  for  their 
hospitality  to  strangers,  so  were  their  fathers  be- 
fore them.  Their  readiness  to  entertain  strangers 
is  in  truth  a  heritage,  the  gift  of  the  parents  to  the 
children.  Yet  remembering  all  the  circumstances, 
it  undoubtedly  speaks  well  for  the  genuine  goodness 
of  heart  of  those  early  settlers  in  the  Old  Dominion, 
that  they  were  so  ready  to  extend  the  right  hand 
of  fellowship  to  their  visitors.  For  of  course  they 
knew  all  about  Lord  Baltimore's  parliamentary 
career,  and  they  must  have  disapproved  of  it  in  toto, 
jMoreover,  strongly  as  they  objected  to  his  political 
doings,  they  must  have  even  more  emphatically 
disapproved  of  his  theological  gyrations.  If  he 
had  ever  been  a  Churchman,  they  must  have 
regarded  him  as  a  faithless  son  of  their  own  be- 
loved Church.  If  on  the  other  hand  he  had  always 
been  a  Roman  Catholic,  he  had,  in  their  judgment, 
been  guilty  of  long  continued  hypocrisy.     Perhaps, 

'^  Fou7iders  of  Mary  laud,  Neill,  P.  44. 


80  LORD    BALTIMORE    IN    VIRGINIA. 

too,  they  had  heard  of  his  troubles  with  Stourton. 
But  now  that  he  was  their  guest,  forgetting  these 
unpleasant  features  in  his  former  career,  they  gave 
him  a  hearty  welcome.  Still,  after  all,  they  can- 
didly acknowledged  that  they  regarded  Lord  Balti- 
more as  a  very  desirable  person  to  have  among 
them,  "as  being  of  that  eminence  and  degree 
whose  presence  aud  affection  might  give  a  great 
advancement  to  this  Plantation."'^  Those  early 
Virginian  settlers  were  not  without  a  keen  eye  for 
the  advancement  of  their  colony.  Rank  and  social 
position  had,  in  their  eyes,  a  certain  money  value, 
and  they  made  ready  to  use  his  lordship  as  one  of 
the  colony's  assets,  while  Lord  Baltimore,  on  his 
part,  readily  reciprocated  their  sentiments. 

From  the  pathetic  letter  which  Baltimore  wrote 
to  the  king  as  he  was  about  to  leave  Newfound- 
land,^ it  is  evident  that  when  he  sailed  up  the  James 
he  had  not  the  remotest  idea  of  settling  at  James- 
town itself.  Probably  he  himself  had  not  then 
any  very  clear  ideas  of  what  he  wanted  to  do, 
having  nothing  more  than  an  indefinite  intention 
of  "planting  himself  to  the  southward."  It  was 
only  after  he  had  actually  seen  their  country',  that 
he  forthwith  formed  his  plans,  and  informed  the 

^  Archives  of  Maryland,  Council,  P.  i6. 
^Calvert  Papers,  Vol.  i,  P.  222. 


LORD    BALTIMORE    IN    VIRGINIA.  8 1 

colonists  of  his  determination  to  remain  in  Vir- 
ginia. Upon  his  making  this  decision  known 
the  Virginians  naturally  asked  his  acceptance 
of  the  country's  constitution,  to  the  adoption 
of  which  he  had  been,  while  in  power  in  England, 
a  consenting  party.  To  their  utter  amazement  he 
flatly  refused  to  take  the  usual  oaths  of  supremacy 
and  allegiance  which  that  constitution  required, 
"  a  thing  which,"  as  they  afterwards  said  in  a  letter 
to  the  king,  they  "  could  not  have  doubted,  in  him 
whose  former  employment  under  his  late  Majesty 
had  naturally  led  them  to  suppose  that  he  could 
not  have  refused  the  loyalty  and  fidelity  which 
every  true  subject  owes  to  his  sovereign."  From 
this  statement  it  is  evident  that  Baltimore's  refusal, 
either  to  take  the  oath  himself,  or  to  allow  his 
followers  to  take  it,  very  greatly  perplexed  them. 
What  could  his  action  mean  ?  They  were  dumb- 
founded, and  the  more  so  because  they  knew  that 
he  must  have  taken  the  oath  before,  not  only  as  a 
professing  Protestant,  but  as  an  acknowledged 
Roman  Catholic.  His  objections,  therefore,  must 
have  been  entirely  incomprehensible  to  them,  and 
no  wonder  !  They  knew  very  well  that,  as  an 
educated  Englishman,  Baltimore  was  perfectly 
familiar  with  the  limitations  of  the  oath,  the  result 


82  LORD    BALTIMORE    IN    VIRGINIA. 

of  the  controversies  in  Henry's  time  and  their  final 
satisfactor}'  settlement  in  Elizabeth's  ;  and  the}'  also 
knew  that,  rightl}'  nnderstood,  the  oath  had  ne\'er 
been  reall}'  objectionable  even  to  the  most  rigid 
opponents  of  kingly  intrusion  into  spiritual  mat- 
ters.'"' But  that  there  might  be  no  plausible  ground 
of  complaint  when  Elizabeth  succeeded  to  the 
throne,  she  not  only  deliberately  refused  the  title 
of  supreme  head  of  the  Church,^  but  she  even  took 
particular  care  to  define  and  limit  the  constitutional 
meaning  of  her  supremacy."  Her  objection  to  the 
title  of  '  supreme  head,'  it  was  explained,  was 
based  on  the  fact  that  the  word  head  had  been 
taken  to  imph'  an  original  initiatory  power,  where- 

^Hallam,  Constitutional  History,  Vol.  i,  P.  556  with  respect 
to  this  oath,  says,  "that  except  by  cavilling  at  one  or  two 
words  it  seemed  impossible  for  the  Roman  Catholics  to  decline 
so  reasonable  a  test  of  loyalty,  without  justifying  the  worst 
suspicions  of  Protestant  jealousy." 

When  Archbishop  Cranmer  was  charged  at  his  trial  with  hav- 
ing made  "King  Henry  VIII  supreme  head"  of  Christ's  Church 
he  replied  "that  the  king  was  supreme  head  of  all  the  people  of 
England,  as  well  ecclesiastical  as  temporal."  But  that  Christ 
was  "the  only,  Head  of  His  Church."  Cranmer,  Works,  Vol.  4, 
Ps.  116,   117. 

6  Collier,  Church  History,  Part  II;  Book  VI 

^Cardinal  Gibbons  informs  us  "The  Church  of  England 
acknowledges  the  reigning  Sovereign  as  its  Spiritual  Head." 
Faith  of  our  Fathers,  P.  26,  The  Cardinal,  who,  as  a  teacher 
of  the  doctrines  and  history  of  his  own  church  speaks  ex  cathe- 
dra, is  not  of  course  an  authority  on  Anglican  Church  affairs. 


LORD    BALTIMORE    IN    VIRGINIA.  S^ 

as  the  sovereign's  power  was  siinpl)'  that  of  an 
administrative  authority  according  to  established 
laws.  The  meaning  of  the  headship  had  in  fact 
been  misunderstood.  Hence,  the  adoption  of  the 
title  of  governor.  Of  course  Lord  Baltimore  knew 
all  this,  so  that  it  could  not  be  charitably  alleged 
on  his  behalf  that  he  was  acting  under  a  misap- 
prehension of   what  was   required.      Such   a  plea 

Churchmen  will  naturally  prefer  to  trust  to  their  own  official 
formularies.  Thus  Article  XXXVII,  which  has  also  the  addi- 
tional force  of  an  Act  of  Parliament,  defines  the  queen's  posi- 
tion very  differently: 

Articlk  XXXVII.— Where  we  attribute  to  the  Queen's  Majesty  the 
chief  government,  by  which  Titles  we  understand  the  minds  of  some 
slanderous  folks  to  be  offended;  we  give  not  to  our  Princes  the  ministering 
either  of  God's  Woid,  or  of  the  Sacraments,  the  which  thing  the  Injunc- 
tions also  lately  set  forth  by  Elizabeth  our  Queen  do  most  plainly  testify; 
but  that  only  prerogative,  which  we  see  to  have  been  given  always  to  all 
godly  Princes  in  Holy  Scriptures  by  God  himself  ;  that  is,  that  they  should 
rule  all  estates  and  degrees  committed  to  their  charge  bj'  God.  whether 
they  be  Ecclesiastical  or  Temporal,  and  restrain  with  the  civil  sword  the 
stubborn  and  evil-doers. 

Queen  Victoria's  official  position  towards  the  English  Church 
is  here  not  appreciably  different,  as  may  readily  be  observed, 
from  that  which  she  occupies  towards  the  Roman,  and  other 
religious  bodies,  throughout  the  dominions.  She  is  over  all, 
supreme  governor.  An  admirable  illustration  of  this  may  be 
seen  in  the  circumstances  attending  the  sensational  burial  some 
years  ago  in  Montreal  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Guibord.  Guibord 
had  fallen  under  the  ban  of  his  church  because  of  his  member- 
ship in  the  Order  of  Masons,  and  eventually  died  under  the  ban. 
When  burial  in  consecrated  ground  was  denied  him  the 
Queen's  government  came  to  the  aid  of  his  Roman  Catholic 
relatives  and  secured  for  them  their  rights.  For  this  whole 
question,  calmly  and  scholarly  dicussed,  see  T/ie  Thirty-Nine 
Articles,  Browne,  Pps.  786  to  802. 


84  LORD    BALTIMORE    IN    VIRGINIA. 

might  have  been  put  forward  effectively  on  behalf 
of  a  foreigner,  or  an  illiterate  Englishman,  but  not 
for  a  graduate  of  Oxford  University. 

The  truth  is  that  the  Anglican  objects,  quite  as 
strongly  as  his  Roman  Catholic  brother  does,  and 
often  much  more  successfully,  to  any  interference 
by  the  civil  authority  in  spiritual  affairs,  and  he 
resolutely  refuses  to  recognize  any  other  supremacy 
of  the  secular  power  than  that  which  is  involved  in 
acknowledging  its  authority  over  all  persons,  spir- 
itual or  civil,  within  its  jurisdiction.  But  the 
Queen's  position  in  the  English  Church  gives  her 
no  such  authority  as  that  to  which  the  Roman 
Church  in  France  is  subjected.  There  the  Church 
cannot  build  a  mission  chapel,  or  even  a  sacristy,^ 

^See  the  following  pathetic  incident  recorded  by  Cardinal 
Gibbons,  ''Faith  of  our  Father's,''  P.  240.  "Some  years  ago,  in 
company  with  the  late  Archbishop  Spalding,  on  my  return 
from  Rome,  I  paid  a  visit  to  the  Bishop  of  Annecy,  in  Savoy. 
I  was  struck  with  the  splendor  of  his  palace,  and  saw  a  sentinel 
at  the  door,  placed  there  by  the  French  Government.  But  the 
venerable  Bishop  soon  disabused  me  of  my  favorable  impres- 
sions. He  told  me  that  he  was  in  a  state  of  gilded  slaver}\  "I 
cannot,"  said  he,  "build  as  much  as  a  sacristy  without  obtain- 
ing permission  of  the  government, "  See  also  Pps.  237  and  238 
of  same  work,  for  a  vivid  description  of  the  sad  condition  of 
the  Roman  Church,  among  its  own  people  on  the  continent  of 
Europe,  even  Italy  not  excepted.  In  England  and  America 
alone  does  the  Roman  Church  appear  to  enjoy  her  own  without 
interference. 


LORD    BALTIMORE    IN    VIRGINIA.  85 

unless  the  government  first  gives  its  permission. 
It  is  the  same  in  Germany.  Only  recently 
the  Kaiser  sent  back  to  Italy  a  bishop,  and  he  Ger- 
man born,  who  had  fallen  under  his  displeasure, 
and  this  not  arbitrarily,  but  in  strict  agreement  with 
the  Concordat  between  him  and  the  Pope. 

But  again,  Lord  Baltimore's  objections  to  recog- 
nising the  king  as  the  lawful  ruler  in  all  things 
ecclesiastical  as  well  as  civil,  must  have  been  more 
than  ever  incomprehensible  to  the  Virginians,  if 
they  recalled  that  the  qualified  headship  of  the 
Church  which  he  so  stoutly  refused  the  king 
he  had  not  scrupled  to  exercise  himself.  For  the 
charter  of  Avalon  invested  him  with  all  power,, 
civil,  military,  naval,  and  ecclesiastical.  He  was 
thus  head  of  both  Church  and  State  ;  a  ruler  with- 
out a  parliament,  or  even  a  council  of  state.  The 
lord  of  Avalon  was  consequently  in  his  own  demesne 
a  greater  man  than  his  royal  master  was  in  his 
kingdom,  who  was  not  in  any  sense  absolute.  No 
King  of  England  ever  was.  The  troubles  of  the 
Stuarts  began  when  they  sought  to  be  absolute  ; 
but  even  the  Stuarts,  with  all  their  notions  of  the 
divine  right  of  kings,  never  claimed  in  their  own 
persons  such  ample  powers  as  were  conferred 
by    King   James    upon   the    first    Baron    of    Balti- 


86  LORD    BALTIMORE    IN    VIRGINIA. 

more.  Compared,  then,  with  the  power  which 
Baltimore  had  himself  exercised  in  Avalon,  the 
rule  over  the  Church  claimed  by  the  Kings  of 
England,  and  allowed  to  them  as  just  and  right,  was 
a  mere  shadow.  That  his  opinions  had  undergone 
no  change  in  this  respect  will  be  evident  when  we 
come  to  deal  with  the  charter  of  Mar^dand.  Under 
its  provisions  he  was  to  be  the  supreme  head  of  the 
Church  in  Maryland,  just  as  he  had  been  in  New- 
foundland. To  be  sure  there  were  certain  limita- 
tions imposed  upon  him  which  radically  changed 
his  status  as  head  of  the  Maryland  Church.  But 
inasmuch  as  these  changes  were  not  made  at  his 
instance  we  can  give  him  no  credit  for  them. 

Lord  Baltimore's  conduct  in  Virginia  was,  there- 
fore, of  the  nature  of  straining  at  a  gnat  and  swal- 
lowing a  camel.  And  it  seems  to  have  been  so 
regarded  by  some  of  the  Virginians  themselves, 
who  had  begun  to  suspect  that  it  was  not  citizen- 
ship but  territory  for  which  their  aristocratic  visi- 
tor was  looking  in  Virginia.  It  was  assuredly  due 
to  this  supposition  that  Baltimore  was  once  at  least 
in  danger  of  personal  violence  at  the  hands  of  a 
stout  Virginia  patriot,  one  Tindale,  who  was  ''  pil- 
lori'd  for  two  hours,  for  giving  my  Lord  Baltimore 
the  lie,  and  threatening  to  knock  him  down."^ 

9  Anderson,  VoL  ii,  P.  90. 


LORD    BALTIMORE    IN   VIRGINIA.  87 

The  Virginians  have  been  severely  arraigned  for 
insisting  upon  Baltimore's  taking  the  oath.  They 
have  even  been  accused  of  giving  him  a  "cold 
reception,"  and  "  anything  but  a  cordial  welcome," 
and  even  of  having  been  "most  ungracious."  ^"^ 
But  what  else  could  they  have  done  ?  They  could 
not  lawfully  have  admitted  him  to  citizenship,  any 
more  than  our  courts  now  may  naturalize  an  Eng- 
lishman who  should  refuse  to  take  the  oath  of  alle- 
giance to  the  United  States.  For  the  last  and  con- 
cluding clause  of  their  charter  ran  thus  :  "  And 
lastly  because  the  principal  effect  which  we  can 
desire  or  expect  of  this  action,  is  the  conversion 
and  reduction  of  the  people  in  those  parts  unto  the 
true  worship  of  God  and  Christian  religion,  in 
which  respect  we  should  be  loath  that  any  person 
should  be  permitted  to  pass,  that  we  suspected  to 
affect  the  superstitions  of  the  Church  of  Rome,  we 
do  hereby  declare,  that  it  is  our  will  and  pleasure, 
that  none  be  permitted  to  pass  in  any  voyage  from 
time  to  time,  to  be  made  into  the  said  country,  but 
such  as  shall  first  have  taken  the  oath  of  suprem- 
acy y  Nor  was  this  a  dead  letter.  In  the  instruc- 
tions to  Governor  Yardley,  of  Virginia,  in  1624,  he 
was  directed  "  to  administer  the  oath  of  allegiance 

^°Fiske,  Vol.  i,  Page  264.     Neill,  Founders  o/Md.,  P.  45. 


88  LORD    BALTIMORE    IN    VIRGINIA. 

and  supremacy  to  all  such  as  came  there  with  in- 
tention to  plant  and  reside  ;  which  if  any  shall 
refuse,  he  is  to  be  returned  or  shipped  from 
thence.""  What,  then,  becomes  of  all  that  is 
urged  on  Lord  Baltimore's  behalf  ?  Plainly  he  was 
not  only  arbitrarily  refusing  to  obey  the  law  him- 
self, but  was  demanding  that  the  Virginian  colo- 
nists should  become  law-breakers  too  ;  a  demand 
which  they  very  properly  refused,  and  in  their  re- 
fusal we  have  reason  to  believe  that  the  King  and 
Privy  Council  heartily  supported  them. 

Bozman,  who  deals  at  some  length^-  with  this 
matter  of  the  oath,  finds  that  the  Virginia  Assem- 
bly could  have  dispensed  with  it  had  they  been  so 
minded,  since  noblemen  were  expressly  exempt 
from  its  operation.  But  such  a  conclusion  is  incon- 
sistent with  Governor  Pott's  letter  to  the  king,  in 
which  he  expressly  denies  the  existence  in  the  col- 
ony of  any  dispensing  power.  Besides,  even  if 
Lord  Baltimore  himself  could  have  pleaded  "  bene- 
fit of  peerage  "  his  followers  most  assuredly  could 
not  have  done  so.  However,  it  is  a  question 
whether  Lord  Baltimore  as  an  Irish  baron,  had 
any  such    privilege    of    peerage    at    all,    an    Irish 

^'  Bozman,  P.  162. 
''  P.  240. 


LORD    BALTIMORE    IN   VIRGINIA.  89 

nobleman  before  the  Union — it  is  different  now — 
being  reckoned  merely  as  a  commoner. 

It  is  all  very  well  to  raise  objections,  but 
would  those  who  find  fault  with  the  Virginians 
have  thought  more  highly  of  them  if  they  had 
admitted  Baltimore  without  the  oath,  and  so 
placed  themselves  in  the  position  of  breaking 
their  own  laws?  Virginia  was  at  that  time  es- 
pecially the  king's  own  domain,  his  "  Kingdom 
of  Virginia,"  and  the  Virginians  had,  therefore, 
especial  justification  in  acting  as  they  did.  And 
yet,  that  there  might  be  no  reasonable  opportu- 
nity for  cavilling,  they  immediately  referred  the 
whole  question  to  the  king  in  council.  If  his 
majesty  should  be  pleased  to  allow  Lord  Baltimore 
the  privileges  of  Virginia  citizenship  without  re- 
quiring from  him  the  usual  oath,  they,  as  loyal 
subjects,  would  be  well  content.  In  the  mean  time 
they  could  not  but  obey  the  law  which  they  had 
sworn  to  keep.  No  treatment  could  well  have 
been  more  courteous  to  their  visitors,  or  more 
dutiful  to  their  common  king. 

The  letter  of  Governor  Pott,  and  his  advisors,  to 
the  king's  Privy  Council  dated  November  30th,  1629, 
details  the  points  at  issue.  It  states  :  "  that  about 
the  beginning   of    October    last   there   arrived   in 


90  LORD    BALTIMORE   IN   VIRGINIA. 

this  colony  the  Lord  Baltimore  from  his  plantation 
of  Newfoundland,  and  that  according  to  the  in- 
structions from  your  lordships  and  the  usual 
course  held  in  this  place,  we  tendered  the  oatlis  of 
Supremacy  and  Allegiance  to  his  lordship  and 
some  of  his  followers,  who  making  profession  of 
the  Roman  religion  utterly  refused  to  take  the 
same."  His  lordship  offered,  how^ever,  to  take  an 
oath,  a  copy  of  which  they  were  sending  to  the 
Council,  but  they  could  not  imagine  that  such 
latitude  was  left  to  them  to  decline  from  the  pre- 
scribed form,  so  strictly  executed  and  so  well 
justified  and  defended  by  their  late  Sovereign  Lord 
King  James."  ^^  Thus  they  left  the  case  to  the 
decision  of  the  king  in  council. 

Baltimore  soon  showed  that  he  had  no  intention 
of  quietly  awaiting  in  Virginia  the  answer  to  this 
appeal.  To  that  letter  to  the  king,  written  from 
Ferr}dand,  in  which  he  had  asked  permission  to 
plant  himself  to  the  southward,  he  had  received  no 
answer,  owing  to  his  having  abandoned  the  colony 
shortly  after  having  written  it.  He  now  deemed 
it  best  to  go  himself  to  England  and  there  to  plead 
his  cause  in  person.  Once  there  he  would  be  in  a 
position  to  answer  all  questions  and  meet  all  diffi- 

'^^  Archives  of  Marylatid,  Council,  P.  i6. 


LORD    BALTIMORE    IN   VIRGINIA.  91 

culties.  The  decision  was  all  the  more  timely, 
as  well  as  the  more  necessary,  since  he  had  plans 
of  his  own  to  accomplish,  which,  when  publicly 
known,  would  set  all  Virginia  in  an  uproar. 

It  was  in  pursuit  of  these  plans  that,  probably 
while  waiting  for  a  ship  to  carry  him  home,  he 
sailed  upon  a  voyage  of  discovery  up  the  Chesa- 
peake,^^ ''the  mother  of  waters,"  the  great  bay 
which  divides  Maryland  into  two  parts.  About 
1608,  the  celebrated  Captain  John  Smith,  Governor 
of  Virginia,  had  explored  this  magnificent  inland 
sea,  and  in  the  account  of  his  voyage  there  is  a 
beautiful  indication  of  the  religious  character  of 
the  people  that  should  one  day  dwell  on  its  shores. 
"Our  order,"  runs  the  record,  "was  daily  to  have 
prayer  with  a  psalm."  ^^  Thus  when  upon  the 
waters  of  the  Chesapeake,  there  sailed  for  the  first 
time  the  ship  of  a  white  man,  the  sound  of  prayers 
and  hymns  offered  in  the  name  of  Jesus,  the  Son 
of  the  Living  God,  was  borne  by  the  breeze  to  the 
densely  wooded  shores  whereon  the  wild  Indians 
dwelt.  Church  of  England  men  were  these  voy- 
agers, Churchmen  or  Episcopalians,  as  they  are 
indifferently  termed  now,  who  used  as  their  book 

^^Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  p,  P.  12,  Streeter. 
^•^  Smith,  History  of  Virginia^  P.  183. 


92  LORD    BALTIMORE   IN   VIRGINIA. 

of  devotion  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer.  In  this 
way  it  was  that  along  with  the  first  sail  of  Anglo- 
Saxons  on  the  Chesapeake,  there  went  the  English 
Bible  and  the  English  Prayer  Book.  Now  for  the 
second  time  these  waters  were  being  plowed  by 
the  keel  of  a  vessel  bearing  white  men.  It  was, 
however,  by  this  voyage  of  Baltimore's,  that  the 
suspicions  of  William  Clayborne,  Virginia's  Secre- 
tary^ of  State,  were  aroused.  The  secretary  had  a 
settlement  of  his  own  in  the  bay,  on  an  island 
lying  almost  as  far  north  as  the  Patapsco  River, 
and  he  feared,  only  too  reasonably  as  events  turned 
out,  that  Lord  Baltimore  might  cast  covetous  eyes 
upon  it.  As  the  result  of  his  suspicions,  Cla)-- 
borne  also  resolved  to  visit  England,  that  he  might 
be  on  hand  to  protect,  if  need  be,  his  interests,  and 
safeguard  his  rights,  a  course  of  action  the  wisdom 
of  which  after  events  fully  justified.^"  This  Cla}- 
borne  was  the  second  son  of  Sir  Edward  Cla}'borne, 
or  Cleburne,  of  Westmoreland.  He  was  one  of  the 
colonial  officers  appointed  in  1621  by  the  London 
company  for  Virginia,  and  the  ablest  man  in  the 
Virginia  colony.  Accordingly  when  Lord  Baltimore 
sailed  away  from  Virginia,  Clayborne  seems  to 
have  sailed  too. 

^^Neill,  Founders  of  JMd.,  P.  47. 


LORD    BALTIMORE    IN   VIRGINIA.  93 

That  Lord  Baltimore  did  not  anticipate  much 
trouble  in  gaining  his  object  is  evident,  since  he 
left  wife  and  dependents  behind  him,  as  if  confi- 
dent of  a  speedy  return.  Manifestly  his  relations 
with  the  colonists  were  not  unpleasant,  notwith- 
standing the  well-grounded  suspicions  of  Clayborne 
and  perhaps  a  few  others. 

Had  the  Virginians  known  all,  there  might  have 
been  more  than  one  Tindale  to  put  into  the  pillory 
for  giving  my  Lord  Baltimore  the  lie,  and  threat- 
ening to  knock  him  down.  Meanwhile,  as  the  col- 
onists went  down  to  the  ship  to  bid  him  God-speed, 
and  to  wish  him  a  safe  return,  they  were  all  inno- 
cently wishing  prosperity  to  the  man  who  was 
coveting  their  land,  and  who  was  destined  to  be 
successful  in  his  endeavors  to  rob  them  of  many 
thousands  of  its  acres.  ^^  Little  did  they  imagine, 
that  he  was  not  sailing  to  England  in  order  to  gain 
citizenship  in  Virginia  without  having  to  take  the 
usual  oath,  but  to  secure  at  their  expense  a  new 
province  of  his  own.  It  was  this  design  which  was 
at  the  back  of  all  his  remarkable  scruples.     The 

^■^  It  is  true  that  the  Charter  which  originally  conve3'ed  this 
property  to  the  Virginians  had  been  annulled  since  1624.  But 
both  James  I.  and  Charles  I.  simply  abolished  the  sovereignty 
guaranteed  to  Virginia  ;  not  interfering  at  all  with  the  terri- 
torial limits  of  the  colony — a  very  important,  and  even  vital 
difference,  but  one  often  lost  sight  of. 


94  LORD    BALTIMORE   IN   VIRGINIA. 

truth  is  that  had  the  Virginians  been  willing  to 
present  him  with  all  the  land  he  coveted,  even  to 
the  half  of  their  inheritance,  he  would  in  all  likeli- 
hood have  declined  the  gift  for  reasons  not  difficult 
to  discover.  There  existed  in  England  an  execu- 
tive committee  of  the  Privy  Council  called  the  Star 
Chamber,  which  had  the  charge  of  all  plantations 
abroad.  This  committee  was  absolute.  Its  will 
was  law ;  its  judgments  final.  But  there  cannot 
be  two  Star  Chambers  in  one  country,  and  Balti- 
more's ambition  was  to  be  the  Star  Chamber  of  his 
new  colony.  He  had  been  a  monarch  in  New- 
foundland, and  he  had  no  intention  of  becoming 
anything  less  in  Virginia. ^^  He  was  by  nature  an 
autocrat,  and  his  imperialistic  tendencies,  un- 
changed by  misfortune,  untaught  by  the  education 
of  travel  or  experience,  were  with  him  still. 

"  Ccelum,  non  animum  mutant  qui  traus  mare  currunt." 

But  these  tendencies  could  have  no  legitimate  out- 
let in  Virginia. 

'^See  Lodge,  A  Short  Hist,  of  Eng.   Colonies  in  America, 
P,  94. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  DEATH  OF  LORD  BALTIMORE. 

1632. 

I  think  poor  beggars  court  St.  Giles, 
Rich  beggars  court  St.  Stephen  ; 
And  death  looks  down  with  nods  and  smiles 
And  makes  the  odds  all  even. 

— Praed  :  '*  Brazen  Head:' 

Back  again  in  England !  Back  from  foreign 
parts  !  How  lovely  would  England  seem  with  her 
trim  hedgerows  and  green  fields,  like  some  neat 
and  well-kept  garden.  How  his  friends  would 
crowd  around  him  to  learn  the  news  of  those 
strange  countries  of  which  at  that  time  the  wisest 
knew  but  little.  But  he  could  not  afford  to  tarry 
among  them  long.  He  was  intent  on  business 
which  would  take  him,  either  to  the  historic  home 
of  England's  kings  and  queens  besides  the  royal 
Thames,  or  to  that  noble  palace  which  the  ambition 
of  Cardinal  Wolsey  had  raised  as  a  dwelling  place 
for  himself,  and  which  the  king  now  called  his  own. 
He  would  have  private  interview  with  Charles 
and  learn  from  him  his  fate.      But  even  had  his 


96     THE  DEATH  OF  LORD  BALTIMORE. 

plans  necessitated  his  making  such  a  request  as  the 
Virginians  had  refused,  it  is  not  at  all  likely  that, 
with  his  courtier's  experience  and  natural  shrewd- 
ness, he  would  have  been  unwise  enough  to  present 
it,  for  it  was  a  request  which  was  not  only  sure  to  be 
refused,  but  one  well  calculated  to  injure,  if  not 
even  to  entirely  destroy,  his  influence  at  court. 
No  king  is  apt  to  look  kindly  upon  a  subject  who 
asks  him  to  abate  his  claims  upon  his  loyalty ; 
more  especially  when  those  claims  are  of  matters 
which  touch  the  ver}^  stability  of  his  throne.  But 
no  such  petition  was  in  Baltimore's  mind.  Fling- 
ing aside  all  disguise,  he  boldly  asked  for  a  prov- 
ince of  his  own  to  be  carved  out  of  Virginia,  speci- 
fying, in  accordance  with  his  Newfoundland  letter, 
a  portion  to  the  southward. 

Here,  however,  he  met  with  opposition  from  an 
unexpected  quarter,  his  opponent  being  none  other 
than  the  king  himself,  who  could  not  endure  seeing 
his  old  serv-ant  and  courtier  becoming  a  mere  wan- 
derer on  the  face  of  the  earth,  and  who  therefore 
urged  him  to  give  up  his  colonization  enterprises, 
with  their  attendant  hardships,  as  not  being  suited 
for  men  of  his  quality,  and  to  stay  in  England. 
Royal  advice  may  not  fall  on  deaf  ears,  and  so  ob- 
taining a  ship  from  the  king,  he  sent  to  Virginia  for 


THE  DEATH  OF  LORD  BALTIMORE.      97 

his  wife  and  servants,  who,  not  without  mishap,  for 
the  vessel  was  wrecked  on  the  homeward  voyage, 
eventually  reached  England.  The  incident  is  thus 
referred  to  by  Joseph  Mead,  Chaplain  to  Archbishop 
Laud  :  "Though  his  Lordship  (Baltimore)  is  extoll- 
ing that  country  to  the  skies,  yet  he  is  preparing  a 
bark  to  send  to  fetch  his  lady  and  servants  from 
thence,  because  the  king  will  not  permit  him  to  go 
back.  "  ' 

Lord  Baltimore  himself,  in  a  letter  addressed 
about  the  same  time  to  Lord  Dorchester,  Secretary 
of  State,  begs  that  his  "  Lordship  would  be  pleased 
to  move  his  Majesty  that  whereas  upon  my  humble 
suit  unto  him  from  Newfoundland  for  a  portion  to 
be  granted  unto  me  in  Virginia,  he  was  graciously 
pleased  to  signify  by  Sir  Francis  Cottington  that  I 
should  have  any  part  not  already  granted,  that  his 
Majesty  would  give  me  leave  to  choose  such  a  part 
now,  and  to  pass  it  unto  me,  with  the  like  power 
and  privileges  as  the  king,  his  father  of  happy 
memory,  did  grant  me  that  precinct  in  Newfound- 
land, and  I  shall  contribute  my  best  endeavors, 
with  the  rest  of  his  loyal  subjects,  to  enlarge  his 
empire  in  that  part  of  the  world,  by  such  gentle- 

^  Founders  of  Maryland,  Neill,  Page  47.  The  letter  is  dated 
February  12th,  1629-30. 


98     THE  DEATH  OF  LORD  BALTIMORE. 

men  and  others,  as  will  adventure  to  join  with  me, 
though  I  go  not  myself  in  person."  ^ 

Observ^e  carefully  the  closing  sentence.  It  shows 
that  although  Lord  Baltimore  could  not  return  to 
Virginia,  he  had  no  intention  of  abandoning  a  pro- 
ject on  which  he  had  so  steadfastly  set  his  heart. 
It  was  not,  however,  until  February  1631,  fully 
a  year  afterwards,  that  his  plans  had  made  any 
material  progress.  Then  it  was  that  he  obtained 
a  grant  from  the  king  of  a  tract  of  land  south  of 
James  River.  Happily  for  the  Virginians'  peace 
of  mind,  Clayborne,  their  secretar}^,  was  in  London, 
as  was  also  their  ex-Governor  Francis  West,  both  of 
whom  made  such  representations  that,  at  the  ver}- 
last  hour,  the  charter  granting  it  was  revoked. 
Another  moment  and  it  would  have  been  too  late. 
The  charter  had  in  fact  been  sealed  with  the  seal 
of  the  Privy  Council,  and  only  wanted  the  Great 
Seal  of  England  to  make  it  effective.  As  with  the 
revoking  of  this  charter,  it  now  seemed  that  all 
danger  had  passed  away,  Clayborne  sailed  to  Vir- 
ginia with  the  proud  consciousness  that  he  had 
saved  his  adopted  land  from  dismemberment. 

Alas  for  Clayborne  !  When  his  back  was  turned 
Lord  Baltimore  returned  to  the  attack,  and  since 

'^  Ibid,  Page  46. 


THE    DEATH   OF   LORD    BALTIMORE.  99 

lie  could  not  have  the  territory  he  had  applied  for, 
he  now  asked  for  those  lands  to  the  northward, 
which  he  had  seen  on  his  voyage  up  the  Chesa- 
peake, stating  that  they  were  unoccupied  by  Eng- 
lish subjects,  although  he  knew  very  well  that 
Clayborne's  plantations  were  there.  But  perhaps 
the  knowledge  of  this  fact  was  an  additional  incen- 
tive. Twice  had  Clayborne  crossed  his  path  and 
thwarted  his  plans.  This  new  request  the  king 
granted.  It  was  indeed  unfortunate  that  the  sec- 
retary was  not  now  in  England  to  speak  for 
himself.  His  London  partners,  however,  promptly 
complained  that  the  grant  was  within  their  limits. 
The  Virginians,  too,  when  they  heard  of  it,  v/ere 
up  in  arms  against  the  charter,  and  they  preferred 
a  petition  to  the  king,  in  which  they  complained 
"  that  some  grants  have  lately  been  obtained  of  a 
great  proportion  of  the  lands  and  territories  within 
the  limits  of  their  colony  there,  being  the  places  of 
their  traffic,  and  so  near  to  their  habitations,  as 
will  give  a  general  disheartening  to  the  planters,  if 
they  be  divided  into  several  governments,  and  a 
bar  to  that  trade  which  they  have  long  exercised 
towards  their  supportation  and  relief."  ^  This  peti- 
tion was  acted  upon  in  July,  1633,  when,  in  a  very 

"^  Archives  of  Maryland,  Council,  1636-1667,  Page  21. 


lOO    THE  DEATH  OF  LORD  BALTIMORE. 

oracular  manner,  as  if  it  were  really  making  a  most 
important  contribution  towards  the  settlement  of 
the  dispute,  the  Council  declared  that  it  had 
decided  to  leave  Lord  Baltimore  to  his  charter  and 
the  other  party  to  the  course  of  law. 

One  hardly  knows  how  adequately  to  charac- 
terize Baltimore's  part  in  this  transaction.  The 
Virginians  had  received  him  kindly  and  treated 
him  with  the  utmost  consideration,  yet  he  hesitated 
not  to  beg  for  their  land,  and  to  go  to  very  consid- 
erable trouble  to  deprive  them  of  it.  But  notwith- 
standing this  discreditable  incident,  and  all  it 
implies,  he  is  described  as  "a  truly  great  and  good 
man,"  who  "  discarded  the  emoluments  of  earth  for 
the  rewards  of  heaven,  and  exchanged  the  bright 
hopes  of  the  present  for  unfading  certainties  of  the 
future."' 

As  regards  the  king's  part  in  the  transaction,  it 
has  been  rightly  characterized  by  Anderson  w^hen 
he  says  :  "  A  more  iniquitous  and  unjust  piece  of 
business  never  stained  Charles'  reign.  An  English 
nobleman  sets  foot  upon  a  colony  in  which  his 
countrymen  are  already  settled  ;  sur\^eys  the  vast- 
ness  and  fertility  of  its  territory  ;  finds  that  he  is 
prohibited,  alike  by  the  laws  of  the  province  and  of 

*  United  States  Catholic  Magazine,  April,  1842. 


THE  DEATH  OF  LORD  BALTIMORE.     lOI 

his  native  country,  from  obtaining  his  object  unless 
he  takes  the  oath  of  supremacy ;  refusing  to  take 
that  oath,  he  returns  to  England,  and,  secures, 
through  his  influence  at  court  and  his  personal 
friendship  with  the  king,  property  and  privileges 
within  the  borders  of  the  desired  land,  far  greater 
than  had  been  conferred  upon  any  British  sub- 
ject."^ 

Lord  Baltimore  had  won  the  day.  Plain,  honest 
colonists,  three  thousand  miles  away,  were  no 
match  for  the  trained  politician,  who  in  kings' 
courts  had  long  ago  learned  the  art  of  wire-pulling. 
But  victory  had  come  too  late.  The  king's  re- 
wards were  for  another.  As  it  was  with  the  re- 
called grant,  the  last  stage  had  been  reached.  Con- 
ditions, limits,  terms,  had  all  been  agreed  upon, 
and  again  the  seal  of  the  Privy  Council  had  been 
aflixed,  when  lo  !  another  objector,  more  terrible 
than  Clayborne  and  the  indignant  Virginians,  ap- 
peared. Death  had  marked  George  Calvert  for  his 
own,  and  on  the  thirteenth  of  April,  1632,  at  the 
early  age  of  fifty-two,  a  worn  out  man  before  his 
time,  he  passed  away,  bequeathing  his  worthless 
estates  in  Newfoundland,  and  all  his  Irish  and 
English  property,  together  with  his  expectations 

^  History  of  the  Colonial  Church,  Anderson,  Vol.  2,  P.  108. 


I02  THE    DEATH   OF    LORD    BALTIMORE. 

in  Maryland,  to  Cecilius,  his  eldest  son,  the  god-son 
of  his  early  patron.  Sir  Robert  Cecil/'  The  old 
Church  of  England  which,  with  that  sublime  char- 
ity which  "  hopeth  all  things,  endure th  all  things, 
believe th  all  things,"  buries  her  children — and  all 
baptized  of  English  birth  she  reckons  her  child- 
ren— "  in  the  sure  and  certain  hope  of  a  joyful 
resurrection,"  opened  for  the  son  whom  she  had 
educated  at  one  of  her  greatest  universities,  Roman 
Catholic  though  he  professed  himself  to  be,  the 
doors  of  old  St.  Dunstan's  Church,^  in  Fleet  Street, 
London,  and  in  its  chancel,  with  the  honors  due  to 
his  rank,  laid  the  wanderer  to  rest. 

It  was  fitting  that  the  first  Baron  of  Baltimore 
should  thus  find  his  last  resting  place,  not  amid 
the  scenes  of  his  boyhood  in  the  obscurity  of  a 
Yorkshire  village,  but  in  the  heart  of  great  Lon- 
don, with  its  restless  energy  and  ceaseless  activit}'. 
His  had  been  a  public  career.  He  had  lived  among 
statesmen.  And  it  was  right  the  closing  scene 
should  not  be  out  of  harmony  with  the  scenes  that 


'^Calvert  Papers,  No.  i,  Page  48.  His  will  runs  thus: — "  I  do 
bequeath  my  lands,  goods  and  chattels  of  what  nature  soever  to 
my  eldest  sonne  Cecil  Calvert  either  in  England  or  Ireland  and 
elsewhere." 

■^  Since  destroyed  by  fire.  Another  church  with  like  dedi- 
cation, occupies  the  site  of  the  old  one. 


THE  DEATH  OF  LORD  BALTIMORE.     103 

had  preceded  it.  More  than  a  generation  had  gone 
by  since  he  had  come  np  from  the  Yorkshire  dales 
to  seek  his  fortune  in  the  great  metropolis.  He 
had  experienced  strange  vicissitudes  since  then. 
London  had  opened  her  doors  to  receive  him,  and 
there  he  would  have  been  well  satisfied  to  remain. 
But  dark  days  came.  Plans  failed.  Enemies  mul- 
tiplied. And  the  great  city  became  no  place  for 
him  to  dwell  in.  Where,  then,  should  he  find  a 
home  ?  In  Ireland,  Newfoundland,  Virginia,  Mary- 
land ?  He  had  tried  all  in  turn.  But  none  were 
to  him  what  London  had  once  been,  and  so  he 
came  back  to  his  old  home  to  die.  Let  him,  there- 
fore, lie  there,  amid  the  scenes  he  loved  so  well, 
where,  beside  the  church  in  which  they  laid  him 
to  rest,  the  traffic  of  the  mighty  city  rolls  on  for- 
ever. Yet  the  place  of  his  burial  has  its  own  les- 
son to  teach.  Notwithstanding  its  singular  appro- 
priateness, why  was  it  that  his  grave  was  not  made 
with  the  graves  of  his  ancestors  in  the  burial  place 
of  his  race  ?  It  is  thus  oftentimes  that  they  bury 
dead  statesmen,  far  away  from  the  scenes  of  victory 
and  the  nation's  capital. 

The  question  is  easily  answered.  George  Cal- 
vert, first  Baron  of  Baltimore,  had  no  noble  ances- 
tors.    He  was  a  plebeian,  a  new  man,  the  first  of 


I04  THE    DEATH    OF   LORD    BALTIMORE. 

his  line.^  We  have,  it  is  true,  been  told  of  his 
inherited  greatness,  of  his  ancient  family,  and  of 
his  ancestral  home.^  His  ancestral  home  was  a 
farmhouse  near  the  town  of  Danby  Wiske,  in  the 
valley  of  the  Swale,  in  Yorkshire,  and  his  ancestors 
were  probably  but  Flemish  artisans.  His  very  coat 
of  arms  had  been  made  to  order  and  delivered  to 
him,  just  as  the  tailor  had  made  and  delivered  the 
suit  of  clothes  that  indicated  his  new  rank  as 
knight.  That  Lord  Baltimore  was  a  new  man  is 
not,  of  course,  any  ground  for  objection  against 
him.  Indeed,  it  must  ever  remain  his  highest 
honor.  Ten  thousand  other  page  boys  would  have 
remained  servitors  to  the  end.  But  Baltimore  had 
abilities  to  succeed,  and  he  did  succed.  And  although 
his  sun  went  down  while  it  was  yet  day,  full  orbed 
behind  the  horizon,  for  a  while  fortune  had  seemed 
to  be  his  own  guardian  angel.  But  scion  of  an 
ancient  house  he  was  not,  save  in  that  one  sense  in 
which  we  are  all  scions  of  a  ver>^  ancient  house 
indeed,  for  he  was  the  actual  lineal  descendant  of 
that  family  of  landed  proprietors  who,  at  the  dawn- 
ing of  history,  owned  and  ruled  vast  estates  lying 

^On  the  roll  of  students  matriculated  at  Oxford  he  is  de- 
scribed as  '  pleb  '. 

^  Davis,  Day  Star,  Page  162.  Sparks,  Biography,  Page  16. 
Kennedy,  Page  23. 


THE  DEATH  OF  LORD  BALTIMORE.     IO5 

somewhere  between  the  Tigris  and  the  Euphrates. 
But  in  this  sense  we  are  all  honorable  men. 

"  The  life  of  Sir  George  Calvert,"  says  a  Maryland 
historian,  "  had  been  one  of  uninterrupted  personal 
and  political  success."  Baltimore  himself  was  of 
a  different  opiuion.  Very  auspicious  had  been  the 
morning  of  that  life,  but  the  evening  shadows  had 
soon  begun  to  fall,  and  then  "  one  woe  did  tread 
upon  another's  heels,"  so  that  he  early  felt  as  a 
man  feels  who  has  failed  of  the  goal  of  life.  He 
had  passed  through  the  waters  of  tribulation  and 
had  tasted  their  exceeding  bitterness.  Many  sor- 
rows had  enriched  his  character.  We  have  a 
convincing  and  touching  proof  of  this  in  a  letter  to 
his  friend  Went  worth,  who  had  just  lost  his  wife. 
*' Were  not  my  occasions,"  so  he  writes,  "such  as 
necessarily  keep  me  here  at  this  time,  I  would  not 
send  letters,  but  fly  to  you  myself,  with  all  the  speed 
I  could,  to  express  my  own  grief,  and  to  take  part 
of  yours,  which  I  know  is  exceedingly  great,  for 
the  loss  of  so  noble  a  lady,  so  virtuous  and 
loving  a  wife.  There  are  few,  perhaps,  can 
judge  of  it  better  than  I,  who  have  been  my- 
self a  long  time  a  man  of  sorrows.  But  all 
things,  my  lord,  in  this  world  pass  away;  statuHtm 
est;  wife,  children,  honor,  wealth,  friends,  and  what 


Io6    THE  DEATH  OF  LORD  BALTIMORE. 

else  is  dear  to  flesh  and  blood.  They  are  but  lent 
us  till  God  please  to  call  for  them  back  again,  that 
we  may  not  esteem  anything  our  own,  or  set  our 
hearts  upon  anything  but  Him  alone,  who  only  re- 
mains forever.  I  beseech  His  Almighty  goodness 
to  grant  that  your  lordship  may,  for  his  sake,  bear 
this  great  cross  with  meekness  and  patience,  whose 
only  Son,  our  dear  Lord  and  Saviour,  bore  a  greater 
for  you  ;  and  to  consider  that  these  humiliations, 
though  they  be  very  bitter,  }'et  are  they  sovereign 
medicines,  ministered  unto  us  by  our  heavenly 
Physician,  to  cure  the  sickness  of  our  souls,  if  the 
fault  be  not  ours."  ^^ 

It  was  the  letter  of  one  who  had  found  that  so 
far  as  earthly  honors  go,  all  is  vanity  and  vexation 
of  spirit,  and  that  in  Christ  alone  there  is  perfect 
rest ;  of  one  who,  out  of  the  fulness  of  a  ripe  per- 
sonal experience,  could  now  sincerely  pray  to  be 
permitted 

To  leave  all  disappointment,  cares  and  sorrow, 
To  leave  all  falsehood,  treachery  and  unkindness, 
All  ignominy,  suffering  and  despair 
And  be  at  rest  forever. 

He  had  found  the  Golden  Fleece,  but  when  he 
stretchd  forth  his  hand  to  claim  the  prize,  lo,  death 
came  in  between.     'Tis  often  thus  :  "One  sows  and 

^"Letter  of  Calvert  to  Wentwortli,  October  nth,  1630. 


THE  DEATH  OF  LORD  BALTIMORE.     I07 

another  reaps."     One    labors,   and    another   enters 
into  those  labors. 

As  the  latter  chapters  of  his  life  were  in  tnrn 
closing,  each  with  its  record  of  failure,  sadly  must 
he  have  realized  his  own  limitations  and  the  limita- 
tions of  mankind  generally.  We  cannot  command 
success.     Nay,  for 

Fate  holds  the  strings,  and  men  like  children  move 
But  as  they  are  led  ;  success  is  from  above. 

Let  us  now  observe  the  true  place  George  Cal- 
vert fills  in  histor}^  In  this  connection  there  is 
a  circumstance  which  we  cannot  fail  to  remark 
upon,  and  at  which  indeed  we  justly  marvel.  To 
this  man  who  is  credited  with  laying  Maryland 
and  the  Christian  world  under  such  vast  and  lasting 
obligations,  not  a  single  public  memorial  exists  in 
Christendom,  if  we  except  his  picture  painted  for 
the  Earl  of  Verulam  by  the  famous  artist,  Daniel 
My  tens  ;  no,  not  even  a  statue  to  remind  a  too 
forgetful  world  of  one  of  its  greatest  benefactors. 
Most  of  all  are  we  astonished  at  this  neglect  in 
Maryland  ;  for  we  remember  that  it  is  written  of 
him  that  he  was  not  only  the  founder  of  the  State, 
but  the  Christian  statesman  to  whom  she  owes  her 


I08  THE   DEATH    OF    I.ORD    BALTIMORE. 

unique  glory  as  "  the  land  of  the  sanctuary,"  "  the 
brightest  gem  in  the  American  cluster  of  States," 
and  so  forth,  ad  infi^iitum. 

To  other  men  memorials  are  not  wanting. 
Washington  and  stars  of  lesser  magnitude  are  all 
suitably  remembered.  But  Sir  George  Calvert — 
according  to  the  Calvert  cult — greatest  of  them  all, 
for  they  were  great  only  in  the  state,  whereas  he 
was  great  with  a  true  greatness  in  Church  as  well  as 
in  State,  as  shown  in  his  personal  advocacy  of  those 
eternal  principles  without  which  there  had  been  no 
sphere  of  action  even  for  a  Washington,  inasmuch 
as  in  the  school  of  which  they  were  at  best  but  apt 
pupils,  he  was  first  teacher  and  master  ;  not  even,  I 
say,  in  Maryland,  no,  nor  yet  even  in  the  city 
which  takes  its  name  from  the  title  under  which 
his  individuality  is  hidden,  is  there  aught  to  remind 
the  citizens  of  him  who  brought  that  message  from 
God,  but  for  which  the  world  might  longer  ha\'e 
remained  in  darkness  and  doubt.  Go  through 
Baltimore's  streets  and  squares  and  see  if  it  be  not 
thus.  There  those  who  have  served  their  country 
— orators,  statesmen,  generals,  judges,  poets — are 
all  suitably  remembered.  But  Sir  George  Calvert's 
memorial  is  nowhere  to  be  foinid.  He  alone  is 
forgotten.       Imagine    it.       The    first    preacher    of 


THE   DEATH   OF    I^ORD    BAI^TIMORE.  IO9 

liberty  of  conscience — unhonored  in  Baltimore  ! 
Unhonored  by  the  descendants  of  the  men  among 
whom,  and  for  whose  good,  he  promulgated,  for 
the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  world,  the 
eternal  principles  of  religious  liberty.  How,  for- 
sooth can  we  explain  such  strange  forgetfulness  ? 
Not  thus  have  they  dealt  with  William  Penn  in 
the  State  which  he  founded.  As  if  he  were  still 
the  guardian  of  its  welfare,  in  heroic  size,  to  be 
seen  from  afar,  crowning  the  lofty  dome  of  the  City 
Hall  of  Philadelphia,  in  the  quaint  old  dress  of  the 
Quakers,  towers  his  mighty  statue.  It  is  the  one 
prominent  object  in  the  city  and  for  miles  around, 
being  visible  far  down  on  the  Delaware  River  ;  and 
destitute  of  all  excuse  must  even  the  stranger  be 
who  remains  in  ignojance  of  what  Penn  has  been 
to  Pennsylvania.  That  statue  is  a  magnificent 
lesson  in  bronze.  Yet  Penn  was  never  to  Pennsyl- 
vania what  lyord  Baltimore  was  to  Maryland.  The 
contrast  therefore  is  one  which,  if  the  cult  be  right, 
makes  Maryland's  neglect  of  her  hero  all  the  more 
flagrant,  all  the  more  inexplicable.  What,  I  ask 
again,  can  adequately  explain  such  neglect  as  this  ? 
Surely  even  Lord  Baltimore's  panegyrists  must  be 
in  a  dilemma  here.  How  do  they  account  for  it  ? 
Is  there  any  possible  explanation,  other  than  the 


no  THE    DEATH   OF   LORD    BALTIMORE. 

Scriptural  one  that  a  prophet  is  not  without  honor, 
save  in  his  own  country  and  among  his  own  kin  ? 

Is  it  not  abundantly  evident  that  in  the  frank 
recognition  of  Baltimore's  true  position  we  have  the 
only  feasible  explanation  of  an  otherAvise  incredible 
neglect?  History,  patient,  impartial,  inexorable, 
regardless  of  conseqences,  ruthless  in  her  decisions, 
regards  his  place  and  services  very  differently. 
She  asserts  that  he  was  no  benefactor  at  all ;  cer- 
tainly not  such  as  an  ill  founded  sentiment  would 
have  us  believe.  He  followed  his  own  good  solely, 
And  the  world  consequently  knows  him  not  in  the 
Pantheon  of  her  noblest  and  best. 

Deeply  rooted  ideas  are  hard  to  eradicate,  especi- 
ally when  general  sympathy  is  enlisted  on  their 
behalf,  and  we  may  not  therefore  expect  a  very 
speedy  acknowledgment  of  the  truth  ;  3'et  happily 
where  the  truth  is  working  the  doom  of  error  is 
sure.  It  is  so  here.  Although  for  the  sake  of  our 
brethren  who  see,  with  eyes  of  faith,  on  George 
Calvert's  brow  the  saintly  halo  of  the  preacher  of 
religious  toleration,  and  who  really  believe  him  to 
be  all  that  they  so  eloquently  describe  him,  we 
could  almost  wish  that  history  for  once  would  be 
less  impartial,  and  that  we  could  see  Calvert  as 
they  see  him.     For  our  s)'mpathies  are  naturally 


THE  DEATH  OF  LORD  BALTIMORE.     Ill 

with  the  heroic,  and  with  all  that  sheds  a  heavenly 
lustre  upon  our  race  and  proclaims  its  lofty  origin. 
We  hate  to  have  our  own  idols  shattered,  even 
while  confessing  that  they  are  but  idols,  and  we 
would  not  therefore  voluntarily  shatter  the  idols  of 
others.  Who  willingly  would  think  of  Jason  and 
his  brave  Argonauts  as  sailing  on  a  voyage  of  dis- 
covery solely  to  establish  new  commercial  relations  ? 
Yet  this  was  all  that  Jason  sought  to  achieve  by 
his  voyage  of  discovery,  so  that  when  at  length  he 
had  won  the  Golden  Fleece,  ever  guarded  by  the 
sleepless  dragon,  abundant  success  had  crowned  his 
efforts.  Now  Lord  Baltimore  was  Maryland's 
Jason,  and  commercial  prosperity  his  Golden 
Fleece.  And  the  world,  commonly  in  its  judg- 
ments fairly  accurate,  and  always  finally  impartial, 
has  not  misunderstood  this.  Accordingly  the 
founder  of  Maryland  has  found  his  appropriate 
place,  not  among  the  world's  benefactors,  the  Isaac 
Newtons,  the  Francis  Bacons,  the  Gallileos,  and 
the  Keplers  ;  the  Luthers,  Savonarolas,  Augustines 
and  the  St.  Pauls,  but  among  the  men  of  lower 
rank  and  inferior  aim,  the  promoters  of  the  mere 
trading  schemes  and  colonization  enterprises,  the 
birth  of  which  every  age  has  witnessed,  but  in 
which  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries 
more  especially  abounded. 


112  THE    DEATH    OF    LORD    BALTIMORE. 

Here  then  we  take  our  leave  of  George  Calvert — 
neither  sage  nor  philosopher,  pilgrim  father  nor 
public  benefactor — but  politician,  merchant,  adven- 
turer, whose  creed  and  life  alike  were  no  better 
than  the  creed  and  life  of  many  thousands  of  other 
Englishmen  who  lived  in  his  own  age. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  CHARTER  OF  MARYLAND. 

1632. 

England,  our  Mother's  Mother  !     Come,  and  see 
A  greater  England  here  !     O  come,  and  be 
At  home  with  us,  your  children,  for  there  runs 
The  same  blood  in  our  veins  as  in  your  sons  ; 
The  same  deep-seated  Love  of  Iviberty 
Beats  in  our  hearts. 

— R.  H.  Stoddard,  "  Guests  of  the  State.'' 

Two  months  after  Lord  Baltimore's  death,  the 
charter  of  his  new  province,  written  in  Latin,  "  the 
only  one  of  the  colonial  charters  the  original  of 
which  is  in  that  language"  ^  finally  passed  the 
Great  Seal  of  England,  with  no  other  changes  in 
its  wording  than  the  substitution  of  the  name  of 
Cecilius  in  place  of  his  father's.  The  province 
was  named  Maryland  or  Terra  Mariae.  It  had 
been  the  wish  of  the  elder  Baltimore  to  have  it 
called  Crescentia,  but  the  king  was  firm  for  Mary- 
land. Virginia  memorialized  the  virgin  queen, 
Elizabeth,  and  Maryland  should  memorialize  his 
own  beloved  queen,  so  that  side  by  side  in  the  new 
world  should  be  the  twin  memorials  of  the  two 
English  queens. 


114  ^^^   CHARTER   OF    MARYLAND. 

The  province  was  of  vast  extent.  Its  generous 
limits  were  defined  in  the  chapter's  opening 
paragraphs  : — 

"  Charles,  by  the  Grace  of  God,  King  of  England,  Scotland, 
France,  and  Ireland,  Defender  of  the  Faith,  &c. 

To  all  to  whom  these  presents  shall  come,  greeting. 

*  -J^  *  -X-  -X-  *  -X-  *  it 

* '  Know  ye  therefore  that  we  favoring  the  pious  and  noble 
purpose  of  the  said  Baron  of  Baltimore,  of  our  special  grace, 
certain  knowledge,  and  mere  motion,  have  given,  granted  and 
confirmed,  and  by  this  our  present  charter,  do  give,  grant  and 
confirm,  unto  the  said  Cecilius,  now  Baron  of  Baltimore,  his 
heirs  and  assigns,  all  that  part  of  a  Peninsula  lying  in  the  parts 
of  America  between  the  ocean  on  the  east,  and  the  Bay  of 
Chesapeake  on  the  west,  and  divided  from  the  other  part 
thereof  by  a  line  drawn  from  the  promontary  or  Cape  of  Land 
called  Watkins  Point,  (situate  in  the  aforesaid  bay,  near  the 
river  of  Wighco)^  on  the  west,  unto  the  main  ocean  on  the  east, 
and  between  that  bound  on  the  south  unto  that  part  of  Delaware 
Bay  on  the  north  which  lyeth  under  the  fortieth  degree  of 
northerly  latitude  from  the  equinoctial,  where  New  England 
ends  ;  and  all  that  tract  of  land  between  the  bounds  aforesaid 
that  is  to  say,  passing  from  the  aforesaid  bay  called  Delaware 
Bay  in  a  right  line  by  the  degree  aforesaid,  unto  the  true 
meridian  of  the  first  fountain  of  the  river  Potomack,  and  from 
thence  tending  towards  the  south  unto  the  further  bank  of  the 
aforesaid  river,  and  following  the  west  and  south  sides  thereof, 
unto  a  certain  place  called  Cinquack,^  situate  near  the  mouth  of 
the  said  river,  where  it  falls  into  the  bay  of  Chesapeake,  and 
from  thence  by  a  straight  line  unto  the  aforesaid  promontary, 
and  place  called  Watkins  Point."  * 

^  Fisher,  Me?i,  Women  and  Manners,  Vol.  II,  Page  154. 
-  Now  called  the  Pocomoke. 
"^  Now  Smith's  Point. 

*  This  description  of  the  bounds  of  the  Province  was  framed 
by  the  aid  of  the  map  in  Smith's  History  of  Virginia,   which 


THE  CHARTER  OF  MARYLAND.       II5 

All  this,  a  province  large  as  an  empire,  was 
given  without  money  and  without  price.  It  was 
as  if  King  Charles,  addressing  Cecilius  Calvert, 
had  appropriated  the  language  of  scripture  :  "  Lift 
up  now  thine  eyes,  and  look  from  the  place  where 
thou  art  northward,  and  southward,  and  eastward, 
and  westward  :  for  all  the  land  which  thou  seest, 
to  thee  will  I  give  it,  and  to  thy  seed  forever.  Arise, 
walk  through  the  land  in  the  length  of  it  and  in 
the  breadth  of  it ;  for  I  will  give  it  unto  thee."  '^ 
All,  all,  in  this  vast  territory,  was  his  which  corre- 
sponded with  the  description  then  given — /lac^e- 
nus  uiculta  —  "hitherto  uncultivated."  What  a 
princely  gift !  What  a  splendid  property  !  And 
yet  what  a  tremendous  responsibility  ?  A  young 
man,  twenty-eight  years  of  age,  suddenly  finds 
himself  the  largest  land  owner  in  the  king's 
dominions.     Let  anyone   take   one  of   the  Chesa- 

*'  may  safely  challenge  a  comparison  in  point  of  accuracy  with 
the  maps  of  this  day,"  McMahon,  Page  2. 

A  glance  at  the  map  of  Maryland,  will  show  that  the  present 
boundaries  of  the  state  are  by  no  means  the  same  as  the  boun- 
daries here  given.  Maryland  has,  in  fact,  been  deprived  of  a 
strip  forty  miles  wide,  extending  from  east  to  west  along  her 
northern  border.  This  loss  of  a  territory  now  embracing  the 
whole  of  Delaware,  and  a  large  portion  of  PennsA'lvania,  includ- 
ing the  site  of  Philadelphia  itself,  she  owes  to  William  Penn 
who  obtained  it  by  perjur}'.  See  his  letter  in  the  3Id.  Hist. 
Soc's  care. 

^  Genesis  XIII,  14,  15,   17. 


Il6      THE  CHARTER  OF  MARYLAND. 

peake  Bay  steamers  which  ply  on  the  great  rivers 
of  Maryland,  such  as  the  Patuxent  on  the  western^ 
or  the  Choptank  on  the  eastern  shore,  and  after 
steaming  for  hours,  and  seeing  nothing  on  either 
side  but  what  was  once  Lord  Baltimore's  land,  he 
will  be  impressed  by  the  magnificence  of  the  gift 
as  he  could  not  be  impressed  in  any  other  way. 
Never  did  any  baron  of  the  Conqueror  receive  so 
great  a  territory,  or  mediaeval  earl  hold  such  exten- 
sive possessions.  No  scion  of  even  a  royal  house 
had  ever  so  splendid  a  portion.  It  was  a  patrimony 
which  almost  rivalled  that  of  the  king  himself, 
and  other  than  the  king  no  man  then  living  had 
the  like. 

Nor  was  this  all  of  his  good  fortune.  Cecilius 
Calvert,  the  second  Baron  of  Baltimore,  who  thus 
suddenly  appears  on  the  world's  stage  destined  to 
play  thereon  no  insignificant  part,  was  in  some 
respects  in  an  entirely  unique  position.^  As  lord 
Proprietary  of  Maryland,  he  was  at  once  sole  tenant 
of  the  Crown  and  absolute  owner  of  every  foot  of 

^Peim's  charter  created  a  government  very  similar  to  Lord 
Baltimore's,  but  far  less  independent,  for  laws  passed  in  Penn- 
sylvania must  be  sent  to  England  for  the  royal  assent,  and  the 
British  Government,  which  fifty  years  before  had  expressly  re- 
nounced the  right  to  lay  taxes  upon  the  Marylanders,  now  ex- 
pressly asserted  the  right  to  lay  taxes  upon  the  Pennsylvanians. 
Fiske,  Vol.  II,  Page  145. 


THE  CHARTER  OF  MARYLAND.       II9 

held  by  knight  service.  Sir  George  Calvert  was  in 
Newfoundland  as  a  feudal  lord.  Now  there  was 
no  more  honorable  nor  independent  way  of  holding 
land  than  that.  Ordinary  knight  servdce  merely 
required  the  knight  to  render  forty  days'  service  in 
the  field  to  his  master  the  king ;  to  bear  a  due  por- 
tion of  the  expenses  when  he  knighted  his  eldest 
son;  and  the  same  when  he  married  his  eldest  daugh- 
ter. In  place  of  these  three  forms  of  service  sub- 
stitutes were  not  infrequently  accepted  ;  an  indulg- 
ence which  was  permitted  in  the  case  of  the  first 
Baron  of  Baltimore,  his  substitute  being  nothing 
more  than  the  tender  of  a  white  horse  whenever  the 
king  should  in  person  visit  the  Province  of  Avalon. 
In  the  Maryland  Charter  it  was  expressly  declared 
that  the  grant  to  Lord  Baltimore  was  not  by  knight 
service,  but  by  "free  and  common  soccage,"  on 
payment  of  an  annual  rent  of  two  Indian  arrows 
and  one  fifth  of  all  the  gold  and  silver  there  found. 
It  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  character  of  this 
payment  is  curiously  in  accord  with  some  of  the 
old  land  tenures  in  England.  The  Manor  of 
Elston,  Nottingham,  was  held  by  the  rent  of  one 
pound  of  cummin  seed,  two  pairs  of  gloves  and  a 
steel  needle.  Henry  III.  gave  to  Henry  de  Aldithe- 
ly,   Egmundun  and  Newport,   in    the    County    of 


I20      THE  CHARTER  OF  MARYLAND. 

Salop,  for  the  rent  of  a  mewed  sparhawk  to  be 
delivered  into  the  King's  Exchequer  ever}'  year  at 
the  Feast  of  St.  Michael."  Today  the  visitor  at 
Windsor  Castle  is  shown  a  couple  of  silk  flags, 
which  must  be  renewed  every  year  to  enable  the 
owners  to  retain  possession  of  the  noble  estates  of 
Blenheim  and  Marlborough. 

The  change  was  great.  The  feudal  lord  ^-  had 
been  abolished,  and  in  his  place  had  been  put  the 
citizen,  with  vast  powers  and  rare  privileges  indeed, 
but  holding  his  property  precisely  as  we  hold  ours, 
subject  to  the  laws  and  bound  by  all  the  responsi- 
bilities entailed.  The  feudal  lord  of  Avalon  needed 
never  to  go  to  England,  ought  not  to  go,  and  might 
even  refuse  to  go  ;  the  patentee  under  the  Mar\'land 
holding  "by  free  and  common  soccage"  Vv^as  obliged 
to  go.  The  one  could  rule  in  his  distant  province, 
and  tyrannize  over  his  subjects  without  let  or  hin- 
drance, and  without  any  opportunity  afforded  of 
redress,  until  the  king  himself  came  into  his 
demesne ;  the   other  year  by  year  had   to    appear 

''^  The  statement  that  the  charter,  ' '  Created  a  great  feudal 
proprietorship  and  introduced  on  the  American  continent  the 
feudal  S3'stem,  which  was  gradualh-  disappearing  in  England" 
would  seem  to  be  incorrect,  Fisher,  ISFcn,  Womeyi  and  Man7ierSy 
Vol*  II,  Page  155.  For  same  statement  see  Sparks,  Vol.  XIX, 
new  series  IX,  P.  7. 


THE   CHARTER   OF    MARYLxAND.  121 

personally  at  Windsor,  bringing  his  Indian  arrows 
with  him  and  prepared  to  give  an  account  of  his 
stewardship.  Doubtless  this  great  change  was  due 
to  the  action  of  the  Privy  Council,  which  had  all 
along  looked  upon  the  king's  favoritism  of  Lord 
Baltimore  with  ill-concealed  dislike.  Nor  was  its 
motive  in  thus  making  so  radical  a  change  any- 
thing difficult  to  understand  or  appreciate.  When 
Sir  George  Calvert  received  his  Charter  of  Avalon, 
he  was  a  professing  Anglican  Churchman.  Cecilius 
Baltimore,  on  the  other  hand,  was  a  profess- 
ing Roman  Catholic,  and  the  Privy  Council,  with 
the  Archbishop  of  Canterbur}^  as  its  chiefest  mem- 
ber, had  no  intention  of  allowing  their  fellow- 
countrymen  living  in  a  distant  land  to  be  subjected 
to  the  arbitrary  rule  of  a  m.ember  of  the  Roman 
Church,  however  excellent  a  man  he  might  be. 
Hence  the  change. 

Was  it  this  immense  difference,  with  its  entailed 
obligations  on  the  patentee  to  regularly  appear  in 
person  at  a  certain  time  and  place,  and  then  and 
there  pay  his  rent,  that  explains  why  Cecilius 
never  left  England  to  see  the  province  he  held  ? 
In  part  this  certainly  was  the  explanation,  although 
it  appears  that  the   English  government   insisted 


122      THE  CHARTER  OF  MARYLAND. 

upon  his  remaining  in  the  conntr}',  his  presence 
there  being  security  for  his  good  behavior.  ^^ 

The  second  clause  was  even  more  important.  It 
dealt  directly  with  the  religion  of  the  new  colony, 
as  the  first  clause  had  dealt  with  it  indirectly.  In 
giving  the  Lord  Proprietary  of  IMaryland  the  same 
power  to  license  the  erection  of  places  of  worship 
which  he  had  already  possessed  in  Avalon  it  was 
now  stipulated  that  the  churches  and  chapels  were 
"to  be  dedicated  and  consecrated  according  to  the 
ecclesiastical  laws  of  England "  ^^ — a  provision 
zvholly  wanting  in  the  Avalon  Charter. 

^^  It  is  not  here  implied  that  Cecilius  was  never  able  to  visit 
Maryland.  Later  on  the  time  came  when  he  conld  have  settled 
on  his  property,  as  his  son  and  successor  gladly  did,  but  at  first, 
and  for  some  years  while  the  experiment  of  a  Roman  Catholic 
proprietary  with  royal  jurisdiction  was  on  its  trial,  he  was  un- 
doubtedly detained  in  England  as  security. 

^^  Comments  on  this  important  addition  to  the  Maryland  Char- 
ter are  generally  noteworthy  as  tending  to  evade  its  real  signifi- 
cance, e,  g.  McSherry,  P.  24.  "The  ecclesiastical  laws  of 
England,  so  far  as  they  related  to  the  consecration  or  presenta- 
tion of  churches  or  chapels  were  extended  to  the  colony,  but 
the  question  of  state  religion  was  left  untouched  and  therefore 
within  the  legislative  power  of  the  colonists  themselves."  But 
if  England's  ecclesiastical  laws  were  extended  to  Maryland  then 
England's  Church  was  established  there. 

Again,  Browne,  Yl/^zri'/rt^/r/,  P.  69.  The  charter  "permitted 
him  to  have  churches  consecrated  according  to  other  rituals." 
And  the  following  by  way  of  proof  !  "  One  of  the  first  acts  of 
the  missionaries  was  to  consecrate  a  Roman  Chapel."  But  see 
the  text  for  quotations  from  stranger  conclusions  still. 


THE  CHARTER  OF  MARYLAND.       1 23 

That  the  insertion  of  such  a  clause  should  have 
been  deemed  a  necessary  condition  of  the  issuing  of 
the  charter,  has,  not  without  reason,  sorely  perplexed 
those  who  see  in  it  an  instrument  for  securing 
religious  liberty.  No  wonder  "  the  candid  inquirer 
must  admit  that  there  is  in  the  charter  no  advance 
upon  the  ideas  which  then  prevailed  in  England 
upon  this  subject,"  and  that  it  is  equally  mysterious 
to  the  same  candid  inquirer  to  see  that  the  "same 
connection  between  Church  and  State  is  contem- 
plated, which  then  existed  in  the  mother  country."  ^^ 
But  so  obvious  are  these  truths,  that  we  may  not 
unreasonably  marvel  at  certain  strange  deductions 
which  have  been  made  from  the  presence  of  this 
restricting  clause.  For  we  have  been  told  that  the 
proprietary  possessed  the  right  to  prevent  the 
erection  of  any  church  or  chapel  for  the  propagation 
of  a  faith  which  he  should  choose  to  suppress. ^*^ 
We  have  further  been  told  that  having  "the 
patronage  and  advowson  of  all  churches  which 
should  happen  to  be  built,  the  proprietary  had 
besides  the  full  control  of  all  ecclesiastical  affairs  "  ; 
that  "  the  pastors  were  to  be  chosen,  not  by  popular 
election,  but  by  the   appointment  of  the  owner  of 

^5  Sparks.     American   Biograpky,  Vol.  XIX,  new  series,  IX. 
P.  27. 
'^/did. 


124  I'HE   CHARTER   OF    MARYLAND. 

the  soil  "  ;  and  that  in  fact  he  might  "by  the  ex- 
clusive power  of  appointment,  dictate  the  faith  of  the 
province."  ^^  But  behold  the  climax:  "  Thus  this 
clause  becomes  an  additional  mark  of  favor  on  the 
part  of  the  sovereign  power  towards  the  patentee  !  " 
I  am  not  in  the  least  surprised  that  one  holding 
these  views  of  Lord  Baltimore's  powers  should  con- 
fess that,  "  no  little  ingenuity  is  required  to  explain 
the  fact  that  such  extensive  ecclesiastical  powers 
should  have  been  conferred  by  Charles,  himself  a 
Protestant,  on  Lord  Baltimore,  an  avowed  Catho- 
lic." Or  that  he  should  never  be  able  to  compre- 
hend a  thing  "still  more  mysterious,  how  a  (Ro- 
man) Catholic  could  consecrate  churches  according 
to  the  ecclesiastical  laws  of  England,  w^hen  the  ex- 
ercise of  that  religion  was  there  forbidden  under 
severe  penalties,  by  Act  of  Parliament."  ^*  All 
this  is  but  another  illustration  of  the  hopeless  con- 
fusion which  follows  neglect  to  observe  carefully 
the  intent  of  a  charter  which  guaranteed  "all  the 
privileges,  franchises  and  liberties  of  this  our  King- 
dom of  England "  to  the  colonists.  Perhaps  a 
closer  acquaintance  with  the  ecclesiastical  system 
of  England  would  have  shown  that  the  difficulties 

^'  Ibid,  Pps.  27  and  28. 
^Ubid. 


THE  CHARTER  OF  MARYLAND.       1 25 

supposed  to  be  created  by  the  charter  were  not  so 
insurmountable.  In  England  the  idea  of  the  clergy 
being  chosen  by  popular  vote  is  almost  unknown. 
The  lord  of  the  manor  is  commonly  the  patron  of 
the  "living,"  as  the  parishes  are  called,  and  until 
Queen  Anne's  time,  even  were  the  patron  a  Roman 
Catholic,  he  legally  exercised  the  right  of  appoint- 
ment.^^ Now  Lord  Baltimore  was  simply  the  pat- 
ron of  the  churches  to  be  built  and  of  the  parishes 
to  be  founded  in  Maryland.  And  while  it  is  con- 
ceivable, that  disregarding  alike  the  dictates  of  pru- 
dence, the  teachings  of  common  sense,  the  impulses 
of  common  orratitude  and  the  oblig-ations  of  honor 
that  he  might  have  acted  in  the  way  suggested,  it 
is  noteworthy  that  he  never  did  so  act.  On  the 
contrary,  though  by  no  means  always  a  model  pat- 
ron, he  took  care  to  interfere  in  ecclesiastical  affairs 
as  little  as  possible.  Indeed,  although  the  charter 
made  provision,  as  Burnap  admits,  "for  the  support 
of  the  clergy,  not  by  the  people,  but  by  the  rent  of 
lands,  or  other  property,  bestowed  upon  each  indi- 
vidual church  by  the  proprietary,  or  those  to  whom 

^^  Under  a  statute  of  the  thirteenth  year  of  Queen  Anne  no  Ro- 
man Catholic  is  permitted,  "directl}-  or  indirectly,  mediately  or 
immediately, ' '  to  exercise  patronage  within  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, his  right  of  presentation  or  nomination  lapsing  to  the 
University  of  either  Oxford  or  Cambridge. 


126       THE  CHARTER  OF  MARYLAND. 

he  might  convey  landed  estates,"  ^'^  there  is  no  evi- 
dence that  Baltimore  ever  faithfully  carried  out 
that  part  of  his  contract.  Freely  he  had  received  ; 
it  could  scarcely  be  contended  that  he  had  freely 
given. 

But  the  effect  of  this  clause  was  even  more  far- 
reaching  still,  even  more  intolerant.  By  it  every 
church  and  chapel  built  in  the  province  was  to  be 
the  property  of  the  Church  of  England.  Did  the 
Puritans  erect  a  place  of  public  worship,  the  Church 
of  England  could  claim  it.  Did  the  Roman  Cath- 
olics do  the  same,  she  could  claim  that  too.  Thus 
the  charter  virtually  prohibited  the  erection  of  any 
place  of  public  worship  except  that  of  the  Church 
of  England.  Moreover,  it  was  not  by  any  means  a 
dead  letter.  The  Jesuits  who  came  to  IMar^dand 
with  the  first  batch  of  colonists  were  so  far  from 
thinking  it  was  so,  that  they  built  no  churches  at 
all.  In  fact,  not  till  1661  did  they  have  a  place  of 
worship  of  any  substantial  character  at  all,  a  chapel 
being  then  built  near  Leonardtown,  in  St.  IMary's 

-^  Sparks,  P.  28. 

Baltimore  appears  to  have  entered  upon  his  administration  of 
his  province  with  the  intention  of  honestly  pro\'iding  glebes  for 
the  English  clerg)',  but  the  fierce  opposition  of  the  Jesuits  (See 
Father  Copley's  letter  in  Chapter  XIV)  coupled  with  the  fact 
that  there  were  no  English  clergy  to  provide  for,  caused  him 
to  let  the  matter  drop. 


THE  CHARTER  OF  MARYLAND.       127 

County.  Beside  this,  for  some  time  after  their 
advent  into  the  colony,  the  Jesuit  priests  were  con- 
tented to  hide  their  ecclesiastical  character  under 
assumed  names,  thereby  showing  they  well  knew 
they  were  in  the  enemies'  country.  Manifestly  all 
understood  that  the  Church  of  England  was  to  be 
the  Church  of  the  colony,  and  all  public  worship 
was  to  be  in  accordance  with  her  standards. 

The  hands  of  the  lyord  Proprietary  were  indeed 
tied.  They  were  doubly  tied.  For  as  if  this  were 
not  enough,  a  portion  of  the  tenth  clause  of  the 
charter  reads :  "  We  will  also,  and  of  our  more 
especial  grace,  for  us,  our  heirs  and  successors,  we 
do  straightly  enjoin,  constitute,  ordain  and  com- 
mand, that  the  said  province  shall  be  of  our  alle- 
giance, and  that  all  and  singular  the  subjects  and 
liege  people  of  us,  transported,  or  to  be  transported, 
into  the  said  province,  and  the  children  of  them, 
and  of  such  as  shall  descend  from  them,  shall  be 
denizens  and  lieges  of  us^  our  heirs  and  successors 
of  our  Kingdoms  of  England  and  IrelandP-     The 

'^^  This  would  seem  to  be  a  third  restricting  clause.  But  as  a 
matter  of  fact  it  is  simply  the  logic  result  of  the  first.  The 
change  from  the  feudal  lordship  to  the  free  and  common  soccage 
involved  it.  As  by  feudalism  all  the  people  in  Avalon  were  also 
under  the  over  lord — the  English  king — imder  the  Maryland 
Charter  they  were  not,  save  as  specially  declared  to  be  so. 
Hence  the  clause. 


128       THE  CHARTER  OF  MARYLAND. 

settlers  in  Mar>4and  were  still  to  be  Englishmen, 
with  all  the  rights  of  Englishmen.  Never,  then, 
was  man  in  worse  plight  if  under  this  instrument  -^ 
the  Lord  Proprietary^  of  Mar^dand  hoped  to  found 
a  colony  where  his  countrymen  could  legally  enjoy 
their  proscribed  religion  in  peace  and  safety,  and  be 
beholden  to  none.  With  all  his  absolute  lord- 
ship and  royal  jurisdiction  there  was  one  thing 
which  he  could  not  do ;  he  could  not  establish  his 
own  creed  in  Maryland.  What  a  pity  it  was  that 
Cecilius,  on  receiving  such  a  charter  as  this,  did 
not  at  once  send  it  back  to  the  king,  saying  that 
for  his  purposes  it  was  altogether  worthless.  That 
he  did  not  do  so,  is  fair  presumptive  proof  that  it 
suited  his  purposes  and  satisfied  his  wishes. 

22  Davis,  Day  Star,  Page  26,  speaks  of  the  charter  as  "a  com- 
pact between  a  member  of  the  English  and  a  disciple  of  the 
Roman  Church"  and  as  being  "to  the  confessors  of  each  faith 
the  pledge  of  religious  freedom,"  and  as  having,  if  not  the 
form,  the  spirit  and  substance  of  a  concordat.  And  he  claims 
that  "This  is  the  inference  faithfully  drawn  from  a  view  of  the 
instrument  itself  ;  from  a  consideration  of  the  facts  and  circum- 
stances attending  the  grant ;  and  from  a  study  of  the  various 
interpretations,  essays  and  histories,  of  the  many  discourses  and 
other  publications  which  have  appeared  upon  this  prolific 
theme."  The  facts  revealed  in  the  text  show  Mr.  Da\ns'  infer- 
ences to  be  not  well-founded. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE    ADVENTURERS,    AND    HOW    THEY 
WERE  GATHERED  TOGETHER. 

1632-1633. 

Home,  kindred,  friends,  and  country — these. 

Are  things  from  which  we  never  part ; 
From  clime  to  clime,  o'er  land  and  seas, 

We  bear  them  with  us  in  our  heart, 

— Montgomery. 

Although.  Cecilius  Calvert  was  for  over  forty- 
three  years  Eord  Proprietary  of  Maryland,  he  never 
set  foot  upon  her  shores.  As  an  Irish  baron,  he 
probably  saw  nothing  amiss  in  following  a  custom 
which  allowed  him,  without  forfeiting  public  es- 
teem, to  own  and  draw  a  princely  income  from  a 
property  which  he  had  never  seen.^  Unhappily  it 
was  a  custom  which  was  not  only  too  common  in 
Ireland,  but  it  had  even  had  its  origin  there. ^  The 
old  leaven  still  worked.  Irish  landlords  lived  any- 
where but  in  Ireland. 

^  Froude,  History  of  England,  Vol.  II,  P.  127. 

^  In  charging  Cecilius  with  neglect  of  dut}-  we  must  not  over- 
look the  fact  that  there  were  periods  in  his  administration  of 
Maryland  when  he  was  ' '  under  bonds  not  to  leave  the  king- 
dom."    See  Page  122. 


1 2,0  THE    ADVENTURERS. 

But  in  another  respect  Cecilius  Calvert  was  the 
very  man  Maryland  then  needed,  for  he  was  a  clear- 
headed man  of  business,  "  who  had  understanding 
of  the  times  to  know  what  Israel  ought  to  do."  ^ 
He  resembled  his  father  in  giving  his  chief  atten- 
tion to  business  rather  than  religion,  not  that  he 
was  an  irreligious  man.  But  apparently  he  was 
not  very  much  under  religious  influences,  never 
even  contributing  a  shilling,  as  far  as  the  public 
records  show,  towards  the  building  of  a  church  or 
school  house  in  his  colony.* 

Still,  notwithstanding  this  characteristic,  he  was 
unquestionably  a  really  great  man,  who  more 
largely  than  any  other  gave  Maryland  her  bent, 
and  he  rightly  finds  a  place  among  the  makers  of 
America.  He  was  pre-eminently  Maryland's  lord 
in  a  broader  sense  than  even  ownership  would  im- 
ply, for  he  framed  her  form  of  government,  super- 
vised her  planting,  settled  her  local  disputes,  and 
kept  her  on  good  terms  with  the  mother  country 
throughout  all  the  troubles  of  the  parliamentary 
period,  alternately  enjoying  the  friendship  of  King 
Charles  the  First,  then  of  Oliver  Cromwell — the 
Lord   Protector — and  finally  of  King  Charles  the 

■'  I  Chronicles,  xii,  32. 
*Neill,  Terra  Maria',  P.  132. 


THE   ADVENTURERS.  I3I 

Second.  Handicapped  though  he  was  by  his  ab- 
senteeism, by  local  prejudice,  and  above  all  by  the 
profession  of  a  proscribed  religion  he  was  ever  a 
power  in  Maryland. 

Such,  then,  being  the  second  Lord  Baltimore,  we 
shall  not  marvel  at  the  promptness  and  vigor  he 
displayed  in  at  once  turning  to  account  his 
magnificent  domain.  The  task  before  him  was 
stupendous,  and  bearing  in  mind  how  unfitted  he 
was  by  temperament  to  be  an  adventurer  at  all,  we 
should  readily  have  pardoned  him  had  he  altogether 
delegated  its  burdens  to  others.  With  a  province 
of  eight  million  acres — an  empire  in  extent — his 
responsibilities  were  well-nigh  those  of  a  king. 
For  it  was  not  as  if  his  province  was  under  an 
orderly  and  settled  government,  with  its  industrious 
people  already  dwelling  in  flourishing  towns  and 
villages ;  its  farm  houses  dotting  the  landscape  in 
all  directions,  its  mines  in  full  operation,  and  the 
fisheries  of  its  bays  and  rivers  affording  ample 
employment  to  its  fishermen ;  over  all  of  which 
he  had  but  to  exercise  the  purely  formal,  and 
perfunctory  office  of  governor,  and  draw  therefrom 
his  royalties  and  rents.  Such  a  stewardship  would 
have  been  no  sinecure,  as  our  modern  capitalists 
well  know.     The  proprietary's  task  was  however 


132  THE    ADVENTURERS. 

a  far  greater  one  than  that ;  for  it  was  not  that  of 
mere  administration,  but  of  creation  and  organiza- 
tion. He  was  called  upon  to  people  his  land  with 
industrious  settlers  who  should  themselves  create 
towns  and  villages,  and  turn  the  solitudes  of  rivers 
and  woods  into  centres  of  commercial  activity,  to 
the  end  that  there  might  be  built  up  in  those  parts 
"  of  America  not  yet  cultivated,  though  inhabited 
by  a  barbarous  people,"  a  strong  and  active  colonial 
life.  Grand  was  the  vision  which  shaped  itself 
before  his  eyes.  Not  less  was  it  than  the  making 
of  another  England,  and  transplanting  of  all  her 
aristocratic  forms  and  ancient  customs  to  the  virgin 
soil  of  Maryland  ;  where  there  should  be  Courts 
Leet  and  Courts  Baron,  and  where  he,  the  first  Lord 
Proprietary,  should  be  the  acknowledged  founder 
and  first  lord  of  a  line  of  trans  atlantic  gentr)'  which 
might,  in  }'ears  to  come,  rival  in  the  splendor  of 
territorial  aggrandizement,  and  in  weight  of  office 
and  dignity,  even  the  earlier  nobility  of  England 
herself.  It  was  thus  for  him  to  add  a  jewel  of 
surpassing  beauty  and  lustre  to  the  English  Crown, 
and  thereby  earn  both  the  gratitude  of  the  mother 
country,  and  a  distinguished  place  among  her  most 
illustrious  sons. 

Of  all   this  there  was  no  sign  as  yet.     IMar^dand 


THE   ADVENTURERS.  1 33 

was  the  stretched  canvas  upon  which,  as  with  the 
hand  of  genius,  he  must  paint  a  goodly  picture ; 
the  rough  block  of  marble  from  which  he  must 
release  an  angel.  But  until  this  was  done  the  can- 
vas and  marble  were  canvas  and  marble  only. 
Those  rivers  teeming  with  fish,  those  forests  full 
of  game,  that  soil,  fertile,  rich  and  deep,  those 
mines  yet  untouched,  abounding  in  coal  and  iron; 
were  all  valueless  to  him  and  to  the  children  of  his 
people,  until  the  vision  was  fulfilled.  The  pro- 
prietary had  need  of  divine  guidance.  And  the 
prayer  of  the  youthful  King  Solomon  might  w^ell 
have  served  him  for  a  model : — "  O  Lord,  my  God,, 
thou  hast  made  thy  serv^ant  king  instead  of  David, 
my  father,  and  I  am  like  a  little  child  :  I  know  not 

how  to  go  out  or  come  in Give  therefore 

thy  servant  an  imderstanding  heart.  "^ 

Whatever  were  his  feelings  on  succeeding  to  his 
inheritance,  Cecilius  Calvert  lost  no  time  in  formu- 
lating his  plans.  All  England  must  know  of 
Maryland.  Public  attention  must  be  drawn  to  her 
golden  opportunities.  He  needed  emigrants  for  his 
plantation.  Able-bodied  men  only  were  desired  ; 
especially  such  as  could  handle  well  the  tools  of 
the  artisan  and  the  mechanic,  and  the  implements 

^  I  Kings,  iii,  7  and  9. 


134  "THE   ADVENTURERS. 

of  husbandry.  But  for  all  acceptable  candidates, 
abundant  were  the  rewards.  Were  they  poor  he 
would  see  that  they  were  afforded  the  means  of 
going  to  the  new  country.  Had  they  money  to 
invest,  this  was  the  time.  The  profits  were  abso- 
lutely sure,  and  they  were  so  large  that  every  man 
who  did  not  embrace  this  chance  of  investing 
would  be  losing  the  opportunity  of  his  life. 

Concerning  the  special  inducements  offered  we 
know  all  on  the  reliable  authority  of  the  lord  pro- 
prietary himself,  for  there  is  in  existence  an 
''account  of  Cecil  Calvert,  Baron  of  Baltimore, 
which  he  himself  faithfully  compiled,  from  the 
reports  scattered  through  England  by  travelers, 
who  had  sought  their  fortunes  in  the  new  world," 
in  which  the  character,  quality  and  state  of  the 
country,  and  its  numerous  advantages  and  sources 
of  wealth  were  amply  set  forth.'"'  This  tract  or 
prospectus  printed  to  influence  public  opinion, 
declared  it  to  be  the  intention  of  "  the  Most  Illus- 
trious Baron "  to  sail  for  his  province  about  the 
middle  of  the  following  September,  and   to  lead 

•'The  curious  tract  published  in  1666  by  George  Alsop,  "A 
character  of  the  province  of  Maryland,"  from  its  style  and  from 
its  dedication  to  Lord  Baltimore  and  the  merchant  adventurers, 
we  may  infer  that  it  was  paid  for  by  them  in  order  to  encourage 
emigration. 


THE   ADVENTURERS.  1 35 

thither  a  colony.  There  was  no  risk  of  loss,  the 
tract  continued,  for  having  studied  the  advantages 
and  disadvantages  of  other  colonies,  the  baron  was 
convinced  that  his  own  promised  "  the  most  pros- 
perous success."  His  authorities  for  this  roseate 
view  were,  first  and  foremost,  certain  writings  which 
his  own  father  had  left  behind  him — "  an  eye  wit- 
ness reliable  and  worthy  of  all  credit  ;^ — and,  in  the 
next  place,  the  reports  of  other  eye  witnesses  con- 
stantly coming  from  that  country  or  places  not  far 
from  it.  Besides,  in  confirmation,  there  were  the 
published  statements  of  Captain  John  Smith,  who 
first  discovered  the  country.^  And  in  addition  to 
this  testimony  he  might  add  the  unanimous  reports, 
in  agreement  therewith,  of  very  many  then  living  in 
London,  who  fonuerly  came  from  these  countries, 
and  intended  to  return  there. 

Now  to  all  those  who  should  "  accompany  and 
assist  him  in  so  glorious  an  undertaking,  the  Baron 
offered  many  inducements,  in  the  most  generous 
and  liberal  spirit."  ^     Although   at   the  same  time 

"  Cecilius  Calvert,  ^^  A71  Account  of  the  Colony  of  the  Lord 
Baron  of  Baltimore.     P.  45. 

^  The  True  Travels,  Adventures  and  Observations  of  Captai^i 
fohn  Smith  in  Europe,  Asia,  Africa  and  America. 

^Account,  P.  46.  New  conditions  were  issued  in  1635.  See 
Archives,  Pp.  47,  49.  These  conditions  assigned  to  every  emigrant 
from  England,  bringing  in  five  men,  one  thousand  acres  of  land, 


136  THE   ADVENTURERS. 

he  would  not  have  his  countrymen  suppose  that  his 
principal  object  was  the  raising  of  crops  and  the 
planting  of  fruit  trees ;  for  his  first  and  most  im- 
portant design  was  to  spread  the  knowledge  of  the 
true  God — a  design  worthy  of  Christians,  yea,  of 
angels.  Let  them  think,  therefore,  most  of  all,  of 
the  spiritual  fields  whitening  to  harvest.  Men 
then  in  London  were  telling  how  they  had  seen 
ambassadors  at  Jamestown  in  Virginia,  sent  by  the 
Indian  kings  to  beg  for  religious  teachers  who 
should  instruct  their  people  in  the  doctrines  of 
Christianity,  and  regenerate  them  in  the  saving 
waters  of  baptism.  And  those  Indians  were  still 
crying,  "  Come  over  and  help  us."  Surely  no 
better  work  could  engage  their  attention  than  to 
respond  to  such  a  pathetic  appeal,  "  for  it  was  the 
work  of  Christ,  the  King  of  Glory." '' 

Coming  back  to  mundane  considerations,  let 
them  note  the  climate.  It  was  like  the  "  best  parts 
of  Arabia  Felix     '^     *     "^^     serene  and  mild,  not  op- 

with  manorial  privileges — subject  to  an  annual  quit  rent  of 
twent}'  shillings  ;  if  lie  brought  in  a  less  number,  he  should  have 
assigned  to  him  one  hundred  acres  for  himself,  one  hundred  for 
each  servant,  and  if  he  had  a  wife  and  children,  one  hundred 
for  his  wife,  and  fifty  for  each  child  under  sixteen  years  of  age, 
subject  to  an  annual  quit  rent  of  two  shillings  for  every  hun- 
dred acres. 

^^  Account,  P.  46. 


THE    ADVENTURERS.  1 37 

pressively  hot  like  that  of  Florida  and  old  Virginia, 
nor  bitter  cold  like  that  of  New  England."  On  the 
contrary  "preserving  a  middle  temperature  be- 
tween the  two,  it  enjo^'ed  the  advantages  and  es- 
caped the  evils  of  each."  The  country  was  rich  in 
rivers  and  bays  navigable  for  large  ships  and 
abounding  in  fish.  On  one  of  the  rivers,  the  Poto- 
mac, there  was  such  a  lucrative  trade  with  the  In- 
dians that  a  certain  merchant  in  the  last  year  ex- 
ported beaver  skins  to  the  value  of  forty  thousand 
gold  crowns.  Oaks  grew  there  so  straight  and  tall 
that  beams  sixty  feet  long,  and  two  and  a  half  feet 
wide,  could  be  cut  from  them,  while  cypress  trees 
of  immense  girth  grew  to  a  height  of  eighty  feet 
before  they  had  any  branches.  There  were  plenty 
of  mulberry  trees  to  feed  silk-worms.  Chestnut 
trees  large  as  in  Spain,  and  cedars  equaling  those 
of  which  Ivibanus  boasts.  Vines  of  wonderful 
fruitfulness ;  gooseberries  like  their  own ;  three 
kinds  of  plums  ;  deer  and  swine  so  abundant  as  to 
be  an  annoyance.  Herds  of  cows  and  wild  oxen, 
fit  for  beasts  of  burden  and  good  to  eat.  The 
woods  were  full  of  horses  ;  wild  goats  abounded  ; 
so  did  muskrats,  beavers,  martens,  weasels,  which 
did  not  destroy  hens  as  theirs  did.  Wild  turkeys 
were  there  twice  as  large  as  the  domestic  turkey. 


138  THE    ADVENTURERS. 

Peaches  were  so  abundant  that  an  honorable  and 
reliable  man  actually  declared  that  last  year  he 
gave  one  hundred  bushels  to  his  pigs.  All  kinds  of 
beans  and  roots  were  common  there,  besides  peas, 
which  grew  ten  inches  in  ten  days.  It  was,  more- 
over, such  a  good  grain  country,  that,  in  the  worst 
years,  the  seed  yielded  two  hundred  fold  ;  at  other 
times  generally  for  one  grain  five  or  six  hundred  ; 
but  in  the  best  years  fifteen  hundred  to  sixteen 
hundred  was  the  usual  yield,  and  this  in  one  har- 
vest ! !  Moreover,  the  soil  was  so  rich  that  it  af- 
forded three  harvests  a  year ! !  It  surely  only 
needed  the  concluding  statement,  that  gold  and 
pearls  were  to  be  found  there,  to  make  ]\Iar\'land 
the  El  Dorado  of  the  nations."^^ 

The  advertisement  was  skillfully  worded.  All 
good  things  were  combined.  To  a  missionary,  the 
sight  of  pagan  Indians  holding  out  their  babes  for 
baptism  was  an  irresistible  temptation  ;  the  capi- 
talist was  as  irresistibly  lured  by  the  prospect  of  a 
fortune  in  beaver  skins ;    while  before  the  eyes  of 

11  What  a  satire  on  all  this  puffing  was  the  letter  of  the  king- 
to  the  governor  of  Virginia,  in  which,  bespeaking  a  kindly- 
welcome  and  ready  help  for  the  adventurers,  he  requests  tlie 
Virginians  to  permit  them  to  buy  and  transport  into  ^Maryland 
such  cattle  and  other  conmiodities  as  they  needed.  Surely 
Maryland  needed  no  such  assistance.  She  was  rich  and  in- 
creased in  goods  and  in  need  of  nothing.     See,  Alsop,  P.  43. 


THE   ADVENTURERS.  1 39 

the  poor,  illiterate  peasant,  long  before  the  days  of 
forty  acres  and  a  mule,  was  dangled  the  prize  of 
independent  land  ownership,  combined  with  large 
shares  in  the  profits  of  the  very  latest  colonial 
venture. 

Thus  there  were  two  classes  of  motives,  the 
spiritual  and  the  commercial,  to  which  the  lord 
proprietary  appealed  in  seeking  the  settlers  he 
needed.  The  first  was  the  very  common-place  one 
of  self-interest  and  self-aggrandizement.  Emigrants 
to  Maryland  would  gain  sometimes  fifteen  hundred 
fold  or  sixteen  hundred,  and  that  three  times  a 
year !  The  second,  less  common,  but  to  some 
minds  equally  attractive,  was  the  evangelization  of 
the  heathen.  Priests  who  taught  the  Christian 
religion  to  the  children  sitting  in  darkness  would 
not  go  without  their  reward — a  reward  not  less  real 
because  only  to  be  reaped  when  at  the  final  judg- 
ment "  they  that  be  wise  shall  shine  as  the 
brightness  of  the  firmament ;  and  they  that  turn 
many  to  righteousness  as  the  stars  for  ever  and 
ever." 

One  would  naturally  have  supposed  that  this 
appeal  would  have  been  attended  with  very  dis- 
astrous consequences  to  England  herself;  at  any  rate 
that  the  Roman  Catholic  portion  of  the  population 


140  THE   ADVENTURERS. 

"  hounded  from  every  hundred  in  the  three  king- 
doms," ^^  would  have  immediately  answered  it. 
For  less  than  religious  liberty — man's  dearest 
possession  on  earth — cities  have  been  depopulated.^'^ 
But  on  the  present  occasion,  strangely  enough, 
there  was  no  such  fever ;  no  hasty  mortgaging  of 
estates ;  no  rushing  to  the  markets  by  property 
holders  desirous  of  realizing  on  their  property  ;  no 
ruinous  selling  of  ploughs  and  agricultural  imple- 
ments by  the  farmers,  nor  of  tools  by  the  artisans. 
And  as  with  the  men,  so  with  the  women.  None 
were  found  disposing  of  their  trinkets  to  secure  a 
passage  to  that  new  world  where  they  w^ould  gain 
liberty  of  conscience  for  themselves  and  for  their 
children.  Apparently,  strange  as  it  seems,  that 
world  had  no  charms  for  them,  and  in  consequence 
this  public  appeal  fell  so  flat  that  two  sorr}-  ships, 
one  of  three  hundred  and  fifty  tons,  the  other  of 
fifty,  were  amply  sufficient  to  carry  the  true 
Israelites,  some  two  hundred  and  odd  persons  in 
all, — "out  of  the  house  of  bondage  to  the  land 
flowing  with  milk  and  honey." 

Very    different    in  its  successful    issue  was    the 
beginning  of  the  Puritan  colony  at  jMassachusetts 

i-^TJA/.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  18.     P.  9. 

1' Quoted  by  Prescott,  Peru.    P.  193,  Vol.  I. 


THE    ADVENTURERS.  141 

Bay.  No  touting  for  emigrants  was  required  then, 
nor  any  painting  of  rose-colored  pictures  of  the 
i\merican  land.  Nevertheless  it  required  not  less 
than  eleven  ships  to  transport  the  seven  hundred 
men,  women  and  children,  who  forthwith  offered  to 
leave  forever  their  native  soil.  And  this  was  but 
a  beginning.  So  great  was  the  exodus  at  one  time 
that  even  royal  authority  was  invoked  to  put  a  stop 
to  it.'' 

But  this  is  not  all.  A  still  more  remarkable 
feature  of  the  expedition  organized  with  so  much 
energy  remains  to  be  noted.  A  religious  census  of 
the  passengers  makes  it  abimdantly  clear  that  even 
out  of  those  who  did  respond  to  the  appeal  only  an 
insignificant  proportion  were  members  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church.''^  Beginning  with  the 
first  name  upon  the  list,  that  of  Ivconard  Calvert, 
brother  of  Cecilius,  and  leader  of  the  expedition,  as 
was  to  be  expected  from  his  family  connections,  he 
was  a  mxcmber  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church. 
The  next  name  to  his,  however,  was  that  of  a 
member  of  the  English  Church,  Jerome  Hawley,'*^ 

^*  Old  Times  in  the  Colonies.     P.  165  and  184. 

^^Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  18.  Pp.  32  and  176. 

^^  William  Hawle}',  brother  of  Jerome  Hawley,  was  a  Pro- 
testant. Jerome  was  a  Treasurer  of  Virginia.  No  Roman 
Catholic  could  have  held  that  office. 


142  THE    ADVENTURERS. 

who  accompanied  the  expedition  as  councillor  of 
the  new  province.  Thomas  Cornwaleys,  v/hose 
name  stands  third  on  the  list,  also  a  councillor  of 
the  province,  like  Hawley,  was  a  member  of  the 
English  Church. ^'^  Then  as  we  proceed  the  strange 
fact  is  revealed  that  at  least  three-fourths  of  the 
emigrants  were  not  m.embers  of  the  Roman  Church 
at  all,  but  of  the  English.  We  have  this  on  author- 
ity which    cannot    be    impugned.^^     "By    far    the 

^^  Cornwaleys  is  by  some  authors  regarded  as  a  Romanist. 
See  Browne,  George  and  Cecilius  Calvert.  P.  45.  An  interest- 
ing contribution  to  the  settlement  of  the  question  of  his  religious 
opinions  is  found  in  his  use  of  the  language  of  King  James' 
Bible.  In  his  letter  to  Lord  Baltimore  of  April  6th,  1638,  see 
Chapter  xiv — he  says  :  ' '  My  lord,  I  niaj^  properly  use  the  lan- 
guage of  the  Gospel,  I  cannot  dig  and  to  beg  I  am  ashamed." 
The  Douay  version  of  the  scriptures  does  not  have  this  particular 
rendering  of  the  original,  its  language  being  as  follows:  '  'And  the 
stew^ard  said  within  himself,  what  shall  I  do  ?  because  n\\  Lord 
taketh  away  from  me  the  stewardship  ?  To  dig  I  am  not  able  ; 
to  beg  I  am  ashamed."  Had  Thomas  Cornwaleys  been  a  Roman 
Catholic,  he  would  scarcely  have  been  found  using  the  language 
of  the  Protestant  Bible.  As  additional  evidence  on  the  same 
question  all  Cornwaleys'  relatives  were  English  Church  people. 
' '  A  brother  was  Rector  of  a  Suffolk  Parish,  In  the  graveyard 
there  is  a  stone  in  memory  of  Frances,  wife  of  Samuel  Richard- 
son, clerk,  daughter  of  Thomas  Cornwaleys,  Esquire,  died  June 
24,  1684."  who  was  probably  the  aunt  of  the  Maryland  Com- 
missioner. See  Neill,  Founders  of  Maryland.  P.  69.  More- 
over, Cornwaleys'  second  son,  Thomas,  born  in  1662,  just 
after  his  mother's  return  from  ]\Laryland,  was  a  clergyman  of 
the  Church  of  England,  and  died  in  1731.     See  Neill,  P.  81. 

i*^  Quoted,  ilA/.  Hist.  Soc.,  F.  P.,  No.  18,  P.  32.  See  also 
''Records  of  the  English  Province  of  the  Society  of  fesiis,'' 
Vol.  iii,   7th  series,  Pp.  362  and  364      London,  1877. 


THE   ADVENTURERS.  1 43 

greater  part  were  heretics,"  wrote  one  of  two  Jesuit 
missionaries  on  board  the  Ark  ;  and  again,  more 
explicitly,  ''three-fourths  were  heretics."  ^^ 

Mirabile  dictii.  Eighteen  months  have  elapsed 
since  the  charter  was  granted,  and  now,  after  all 
England  has  been  thoroughly  canvassed  less  than 
fifty  Roman  Catholics  have  been  pursuaded  to  leave 
England  in  response  to  this  opportunity  of  wor- 
shipping God  according  to  their  consciences,^*^  not- 
withstanding, too,  the  unparalleled  prosperity 
thrown  in  as  a  make  weight.  ^^  Yet  it  is  said  that 
"the  Catholics  flocked  to  Maryland."  ^^ 

^^  Yet  Mr.  McSherry  writes  of  these  emigrants  :  "  Nearly  all 
of  whom  were  Catholics  and  gentlemen  of  fortune  and  respecta- 
bility." P.  25.  As  to  their  Catholicity,  Mr.  McSherry  is  right. 
They  called  themselves  Protestant  Catholics.  As  to  their  being 
gentlemen  of  fortune  and  respectability,  it  is  a  pity  that  being 
such  they  did  not  see  fit  to  pay  their  very  moderate  boards  bills 
before  they  left  England. 

^°  Cecilius  himself  attributed  the  delay  in  gathering  his  com- 
pany to  the  opposition  which  the  expedition  had  aroused.  See 
Strafford's  Letters,  I.,  P.  178.  The  real  difficulty  seems  to  have 
been  to  get  men  who  were  willing  to  leave  England. 

'^  Of  this  very  time  we  are  told,  Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P., 
No.  18.,  P.  17,  "It  seems  as  if  England  was  no  longer 
a  place  where  men  could  be  free,  and  while  the  Protestants 
were  preparing  to  seek  new  homes  for  themselves  in  the 
wilderness,  the  Roman  Catholics,  impelled  by  the  same  neces- 
sit}^  and  driven  by  even  more  cruel  laws,  began  to  concert 
among  themselves  measures  by  which  a  sanctuary  for  their 
religion  and  liberties  could  be  provided  on  the  same  continent 
where  so  many  other  Englishmen  were  finding  refuge." 

2-  Quoted  by  Polk.     Pamphlet  in  Epis.  Lib.,  Balto.     P.  15. 


144  I'HE    AVDENTURERS. 

But  even  more  remains  to  be  told.  Lord  Balti- 
more himself,  the  Moses  who  was  to  lead  these 
children  of  Israel  out  of  Egypt  found  at  the  last 
moment  that  he  could  not  go  to  Mar^'land  with 
them.  Surely  "the  pious  pilgrims  who  placed  their 
ships  under  the  protection  of  God,  raised  their 
hearts  in  prayer  for  the  success  of  the  great  enter- 
prise which  they  had  undertaken,"  and  sailed  away 
from  the  homes  in  which  they  had  been  born,  "in 
order  to  plant  the  seed  of  freedom  and  religious 
liberty  to  secure  to  themselves  and  their  children 
the  inestimable  privilege  of  worshipping  God 
according  to  the  dictates  of  their  consciences  "  ^^ 
deserv^ed  better  treatment  than  this.  How  for- 
lorn they  must  have  felt  having  go  to  with- 
out their  rightful  leader.  But  he  tried  to  con- 
sole them.  It  was,  he  said,  his  own  sorrowful  mis- 
fortune, "  but,  by  reasons  of  some  unexpected  acci- 
dents" he  found  it  more  necessary  for  their  good  to 
stay  in  England  some  time  longer,  for  the  better 
establishment  of  his  and  their  rights,  than  it  was  fit 
the  ship  should  stay  for  him,  but  by  the  grace  of 
God  he  full}'  intended  next  year  to  be  with  them. 

These  adventurers  pilgrims  for  conscience  sake  ! 
The}'    themselves   forsooth    would    have   been    as- 

"  McSherry,  History  of  Maryland,  P.  26. 


THE    ADVENTURERS.  1 45 

tounded  could  they  have  foreseen  their  appearance 
on  the  stage  of  history  in  any  such  sensational 
role.  They  certainly  were  the  oddest  set  of  "  pil- 
grims "  e\'er  known.  Young  men  wanting  to  see 
the  world  were  there.  Peasants  too,  desirous  of  bet- 
tering their  condition.  Jesuit  priests,  eager  to  do 
missionary  work  among  the  Indians,  and  hopeful  of 
regaining  some  of  the  vanished  prestige  and  lost 
influence  of  their  society.  Even  the  scapegrace 
class  with  ruined  reputation  and  broken  by  licen- 
tiousness, was  represented  there. 

But  even  had  they  been  for  the  most  part  Ro- 
manists and  not  Anglicans  to  obtain  religious 
liberty  was  beyond  their  powder.  lyook  at  their  pa- 
tron's charter.  They  could  not  go  beyond  that. 
Carrying  that  instrument  with  them,  their  journey 
was  a  fruitless  one.  Better,  far  better,  in  such  a 
case  would  it  have  been  for  them  to  do  as  the  pil- 
grim fathers  of  New  England  had  done,  and,  on  the 
vessel  which  bore  them,  draw  up  their  own  consti- 
tution which  every  man  should  sign,  and  ever}^^  man 
obey.  An  Irish  peasant  believing  his  cabin  haun- 
ted, had  made  up  his  mind  to  leave  it.  But  he 
was  loath  to  go.  Poor  though  it  was,  it  had  shel- 
tered him  and  his  family.  But  at  last  he  was  una- 
ble longer  to  endure  the  presence  of  the  spirit.     So 


146  THE    ADVENTURERS. 

there  came  a  time  when  outside  of  the  wretched 
shanty  a  little  cart  stood,  and  on  it  all  his  house- 
hold goods  were  stored.  He  had  cast  the  die,  and 
he  was  going  away.  A  passing  neighbor  inquired 
if  he  was  flitting.  Before  he  could  answer  a  voice 
out  of  the  midst  of  the  stuff  replied,  "Aye,  we're 
flittin'."  It  was  the  voice  of  the  spirit.  "Oh," 
groaned  the  poor  peasant,  "  if  he  is  going  we  might 
as  well  stay  where  we  are."  So  in  good  faith 
might  the  adventurers  as  well  have  said,  "  If  that 
charter  is  going  we  may  as  well  stay  where  we  are."^^ 

The  expedition  was  to  have  left  England  about 
the  middle  of  September.  But  it  was  not  actually 
ready  to  leave  Gravesend,  its  first  port  of  departure, 
till  October  19th  ;  nor  its  final  port  in  the  Isle  of 
Wight  till  November  2  2d,  1633.  It  had  doubtless 
many  embarrassing  obstacles  to  contend  with  ere  it 
finally  started  ;  bvit  two  difficulties  beset  it  of  such 

'^*  Something  like  this  was  actually  done  by  the  first  Lord 
Baltimore.  His  grant  of  lands  in  Longford  County,  Ireland, 
dated  February  i8th,  1621,  was  made  subject  to  the  condition 
that  he  should  not  sell  the  land  to  Roman  Catholics.  He 
had  also  to  require  all  settlers  to  take  the  oath  of  suprem.acy 
and  be  conformable  in  point  of  religion.  As  soon  as  he  pro- 
fessed himself  a  Roman  Catholic,  he  could  not  rightly  hold  the 
land  thus  granted,  and  so  on  February  12th,  1625,  he  surren- 
dered his  patent,  which  he  received  again  on  March  nth,  with 
the  religious  clause  struck  out.     See  Wilhelm,  P.  117. 


THE    ADVENTURERS.  147 

a  character  as  to  afford  a  perfectly  satisfactory  ex- 
planation of  all  the  delays  which  occurred. 

The  first  difficulty  was  of  the  nature  of  an 
attachment  which  had  been  served  on  the 
vessels  because  several  of  the  adventurers  had 
not  paid  their  board  bill.  A  certain  Mr.  Ga- 
briel Hawley  had  contracted  with  a  Mr.  James 
Clements,  and  other  citizens  of  Gravesend,  for 
the  boarding  of  some  of  the  men  at  one  shilling 
a  day,  while  they  awaited  the  ships'  departure.^- 
Before  the  time  for  settlement  came,  Hawley  had 
been  cast  into  prison  for  debt,  the  prison  being  the 
supposed  remedy  in  that  day  for  failure  to  pay  one's 
debts  our  enlightened  fathers  not  possessing  the 
appreciation  of  the  situation  belonging  to  the 
untutored  Indian,  who,  when  confronted  with  a 
like  condition,  laconically  said,  "  Ugh  !  In  prison 
no  catch  beaver."  Yet,  as  Hawley  was  merely 
Baltimore's  agent,  Clements  and  his  fellow-sufferers 
forthwith  brought  suit  against  Lord  Baltimore 
himself.  ^^  The  case  eventually  went  before  the 
Privy  Council,  with  what  result,  however,  is  not 
known. 

The  second  difficulty  was  a  more  serious  one. 
After   the   ships   had    left   Gravesend    it    became 

'^'^ Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  9.     Streeter,  Pp.  106,  107. 
^®  Archives  of  Marylaiid,  Council^  1636-1667,  P.  24. 


148  THE    ADVENTURERS. 

rumored  ^''  that  they  were  going,  not  to  America  at 
all,  but  to  Spain,  and  that  they  were  carr)'ing  arms 
and  soldiers.  In  great  haste  a  government  vessel 
was  dispatched  after  them  to  bring  them  back 
again.  Upon  being  overtaken  and  brought  back 
to  Gravesend,  a  thorough  and  satisfactory  examina- 
tion was  made,  and  the  oaths  of  allegiance  and 
supremacy  were  administered  to  all.^^  Released  at 
last,  the  vessels  again  started  but  all  the  emigrants 
were  not  yet  on  board.  The  rest  were  taken  on  at 
the  Isle  of  Wight,  where  opportunity  was  seized  to 
smuggle  the  two  Jesuit  priests  on  board. 

Mindful  of  the  fact  that  some  of  the  adventurers 
were  Roman  Catholics,  and  that  Protestants  are 
sometimes  unreasonably  afraid  of  Romanismi,  and 
apt  to  take  offence  where  none  is  intended,  Lord 
Baltimore,  as  the  very  first  of  his  parting  injunc- 
tions to  his  deputies  in  charge  of  the  expedition, 
bade  them  "cause  all  acts  of  Roman  Catholic 
religion  to  be  done  as  privately  as  may  be,  and  that 
they  instruct  all  Roman  Catholics  to  be  silent  on 
all  occasions  of  discourse  on  Religion  ^  ^  * 
and  this  to  be  observed  at  land  as  well  as  at  sea."-^ 
The  Lord  Proprietary  would  not  have  his  colonial 

"  Neill,  Terra  Maries,  P.  58. 

2^  Neill,  Founders  of  Maryland^  p.  87. 

29  Calvert  Papers  I,  P.  133. 


THE    ADVENTURERS.  149 

enterprise    wrecked    through    its    being    identified 
with  Romanism.     He  acted  wisely. 

Of  course  such  an  injunction  would  have  been 
an  impossibility  under  the  religious  pilgrimage 
theory.  True  pilgrims  glory  in  their  religion. 
There  is  for  them  no  bowing  down  in  the  house  of 
Rimmon.  They  come  out  of  the  midst  of  their 
unsanctified  brethren  shaking  the  dust  off  their 
feet,  losing  their  homes  but  maintaining  their 
convictions  and  their  independence.  They  practice 
no  rites  in  secret  for  wherefore  but  to  practice  them 
boldly  do  they  become  pilgrims  at  all.'^*^ 

'^^  McMahon,  P.  198,  note.  Mr.  McMahon,  ^vhile  wishing  to 
' '  avoid  all  invidious  contrasts  turns  with  exultation  to  the 
pilgrims  of  Maryland." 


CHAPTER   IX. 

THE   JOURNEY   OF   THE   ADVENTURERS 
TO  MARYLAND,  AND  THEIR  ARRIVAL. 

1633-34. 

You  sail  and  you  seek  for  the  fortunate  Isles 
The  old  Greek  Isles  of  the  j-ellow  birds'  song  ? 
Then  steer  straight  on  through  the  watery  miles — 
Straight  on,  straight  on,  and  you  can't  go  wrong  ; 
Nay,  not  to  the  left — nay,  not  to  the  right — 
But  on,  straight  on,  and  the  Isles  are  in  sight. — 
The  fortunate  Isles  where  the  j-ellow  birds  sing 
And  life  lies  girt  with  a  golden  ring, 

— Joachim  Mii^ler. 

Nothing  so  abundantly  proves  the  practical 
wisdom  of  the  lord  proprietary^  as  his  combined 
appeal  for  farmers  and  missionaries.  Without  the 
goodwill  of  the  Indians  the  colony  could  not  hope 
to  prosper.  It  would  ever  be  apprehensive  of  the 
fate  which  had  overtaken  earlier  colonies.  At  an}- 
minute  the  dreaded  Indian  war-whoop  might  ring 
through  the  dense  forests,  and,  after  a  life  and 
death  struggle,  the  homes  of  the  settlers  be  given 
to  the  flames,  and  their  mutilated  corpses  left 
unburied    upon   the  field.      The    missionary   even 


JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS.     151 

now  is  often  an  indispensable  factor  in  the  progress 
of  trade  and  commerce.  A  shrewd  business  man 
upon  being  urged  by  a  missionary  to  open  a 
trading  station  in  New  Guinea  replied  :  "  Your 
mission  has  not  been  long  enough  established  there 
to  make  it  worth  while  for  us  to  go  at  present." 
But  no  practical  business  man  of  today  sees  the 
missionary's  usefulness  any  more  clearly  than  did 
Lord  Baltimore,  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago, 
as  he  advertised  for  men  of  Christlike  zeal  whose 
work  it  should  be  to  lead  even  the  wild  Indians  to 
contribute  to  the  success  of  the  province  he  had 
inherited.  It  was  doubtless  this  consideration 
which  prompted  the  sole  reference  to  religion  in 
the  advertisement,  wherein  he  so  pathetically 
appealed  for  Christian  teachers  to  relieve  the  minds 
of  the  poor  Indians  of  Maryland  of  their  painful 
suspense  with  regard  to  the  future  welfare  of  their 
unbaptized  infants. 

To  one  of  the  missionaries.  Father  White,  we  are 
indebted  for  a  very  full  account  of  the  voyage  of  the 
adventurers  to  Maryland,  and  of  the  events  immedi- 
ately following  upon  their  arrival,  he  having  left 
us  a  narrative,  or  rather  two  narratives,  giving  a 
full  description  of  the  same,  one  written  in  Eng- 
lish, the  other  in   Latin.     The  English  narrative, 


152     JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS. 

written  at  the  suggestion  of  Leonard  Calvert,  was 
at  once  forwarded  by  him  to  England,  enclosed  in 
a  letter  of  his  own  to  a  certain  Sir  Richard  Lech- 
ford,  whom  he  addresses  as  "  kinde  partner."  We 
should  naturally  have  expected  that  anything  of 
the  nature  of  a  report,  or  description  of  the  country', 
would  have  been  sent  first  and  foremost  to  his  own 
brother  the  lord  proprietar}^  But  "Articles  of 
Agreement  made  7th  October,  1633,  between  Leon- 
ard Calvert  of  London,  Esquire,  and  Sir  Richard 
Lechford  of  Shellwood,  in  the  County  of  Surrey, 
Knight,"  ^  followed  by  a  "  Bond  from  Leonard  Cal- 
vert to  Sir  Richard  Lechford,  dated  19th  October, 
1633  "  ^  sufficiently  explains  Leonard's  action.  Ac- 
cordingly the  governor  sends  the  narrative  to  his 
partner,  thus  speaking  of  it :  "I  have  herewith 
sent  you  ^^  ^  ^  ^l  more  exact  journal  of  all  our 
voyage  than  I  could  find  time  to  deliver  you  in 
this  letter  >*=  *  ^  This  I  have  sent  you  was 
writ  by  a  most  honest  and  discreet  gentleman, 
wherefore  you  may  be  confident  of  the  truth  of  it""* — 
the  "  honest  and  discreet  gentleman  "  being  none 

'  The  Calvert  Papers,  No.  3.  Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  jj, 
P.  19. 
•'/bid.     P.  13. 
Udid.     P.  17. 
*Idtd.     P.  23. 


JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS.     1 53 

other  than  Father  White  himself.  The  Latin  nar- 
rative entitled,  Relatio  Itineris  in  Mar3dandiam,^ 
was  evidently  the  Jesuit  priest's  official  report  to 
his  Superior,  the  Very  Reverend  Father,  General 
Mutius  Vitellesetis,  the  English  head  of  the  Jesuit 
Society. 

When  we  come  to  study  these  tvv^o  narratives 
side  by  side  it  is  at  once  evident  why  one  account 

^  Relatio  Itineris.     P.  10, 

(a)  The  '' Brief e  Relation  of  the  Voyage  unto  Maryland''  is 
one  of  eight  papers  received  from  Mr.  Phillips.  See  Preface, 
Pp.  viii  and  ix.  It  was  circulated  in  printed  form  in  the  year 
1634.  See  copy  in  Whittingham  Episcopal  Library — a  library 
invaluable  to  the  student. — Baltimore. 

(b)  The  Latin  MS.  is  practically  the  same  account  with  cer- 
tain changes  and  additions.  It  has  had  a  mysterious  histor5\ 
Generally  quoted  as  if  it  were  the  original  authority,  it  was 
probably  not  published  till  1832.  The  original,  it  is  said,  was 
discovered  in  the  Archives  of  the  Jesuit  Society  at  Rome,  by  an 
American  priest  of  the  Society,  who  made  a  copy  of  it,  which 
he  placed  in  Georgetown  College,  D.  C.  On  the  Md.  Hist.  Soc. 
asking  permission  to  copy  the  manuscript  it  was  discovered  that 
it  had  ' '  unaccountably  disappeared  from  the  Archives  of  the 
Society."  Subsequent  search  revealed  it  in  fragmentary  form 
in  Loyola  College,  Baltimore. 

' '  The  acquisition  of  the  English  version  has  naturally  led  to 
an  inquiry  as  to  which  version,  the  English  or  the  Latin,  is  to 
be  regarded  as  the  original,  and  to  whom  the  authorship  is  to  be 
accredited."  Md.  Hist.  Soc.  F.  P.,  A^o.  js,  P-  6.  T/ie  Calvert 
Papers,  No.  3. 

"The  English  version  is  an  original  letter,  and  not  a  transla- 
tion from  the  Latin."  Calvert  Papers,  No.  j,  Pp.  7  and  8. 
From  internal  evidence  both  versions  are  evidently  the  work  of 
an  ecclesiastic,  and  as  Father  White  was  the  senior  priest  of  the 
Maryland  mission,  both  accounts  doubtless  are  from  his  hand. 


154     JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS. 

would  not  have  been  satisfactory.  The  English 
narrative  was  for  the  information  of  British  invest- 
ors, and  others  interested  in  the  financial  success  of 
the  colony,  generally  Protestants ;  the  Latin  ac- 
count was  for  the  eye  of  the  reverend  gentleman's 
ecclesiastical  superiors.  Consequently  in  the  Eng- 
lish text  all  descriptions  of  peculiarly  Roman 
ceremonial  are  studiously  omitted,  as  not  being 
likely  to  impress  the  readers*  favorably  ;  while  ac- 
counts of  the  nature  of  the  soil  and  the  character 
of  the  products,  are  enlarged  upon  :  in  the  Latin 
text  the  Roman  ecclesiastic  feels  that  he  can  speak 
his  mind  freely. 

The  Latin  narrative  begins  thus: — "On  the 
twenty-second  of  the  month  of  November,  in  the 
year  1633,  being  St.  Cecilia's  day,  we  set  sail  from 
Cowes,  in  the  Isle  of  Wight,  with  a  gentle  east 
wind  blowing.  And  after  committing  the  princi- 
pal parts  of  the  ship  to  the  protection  of  God  especi- 
ally, and  of  his  most  Holy  INIother  and  St.  Ignatius, 
and  all  the  guardian  angels  of  Maryland,  we  sailed 
on  a  little  way  between  the  two  shores."  There, 
as  the  breeze  failed  them,  they  lay  becalmed  until 
night,  when  a  favorable  and  strong  wind  arose. 
Next  morning,  aided  by  the  breeze,  they  sailed  past 
the  pointed  rocks  near  the    Isle  of  Wight,  which 


JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS.     1 55 

from  their  appearance  are  named  the  Needles.  On 
account  of  the  double  tide  at  this  point,  which  oft- 
times  whirls  away  the  strongest  ships,  and  either 
dashes  them  against  the  rocks  on  the  one  side,  or 
on  the  neighboring  shore  on  the  other,  the  Needles 
"are  a  perfect  terror  to  sailors."  ^ 

The  English  account  omits  all  notice  of  this 
peculiar  religious  ceremony,  and  with  very  good 
cause.  Not  twenty-four  hours  previously  the  lord 
proprietary^  had  given  the  voyagers  written  instruc- 
tions that  all  acts  of  Roman  Catholic  religion  were 
to  be  done  privately,  and  yet  here,  at  the  very  out- 
set, there  is  celebrated  a  ceremony  of  a  distinctly 
Roman  Catholic  character.  Surely  this  was  con- 
duct not  easily  to  be  excused,  for  it  was  disobedi- 
ence on  the  part  of  men  who  as  ministers  of  religion 
should  have  been  the  first  to  set  an  example  of 
faithful  obedience  to  properly  constituted  authority, 
indeed  it  was  even  more  than  disobedience.  It  was 
the  first  of  a  long  series  of  deliberate  acts  of  dis- 
loyalty, which  more  than  anything  else  contributed 
to  the  discrediting  of  the  Jesuit  Society  in  Mary- 
land, and  to  the  overwhelming  it  with  disaster. 
Neither  did  the  evil  done  end  with  the  suffering  of 
the  Jesuits.    The  punishment  of  the  guilty  involved 

^' Relatio,  Pp.  10,  11. 


156     JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS. 

troubles  for  the  innocent,  as  so  often  it  is  seen  to 
do  in  every  sphere  of  human  life  and  conduct — 
resulting  as  it  did  on  three  separate  occasions  in 
the  Lord  Proprietary-  of  INIaryland  losing  his 
province/  For  the  three  revolutions  which  shook 
Mar}'land  to  her  foundations  were  all  Protestant 
revolutions  which  depended  for  their  success  on  the 
emphasizing  of  religious  differences,  and  especially 
upon  the  accentuation  of  the  fact,  that  the  lord  pro- 
prietary himself  was  of  the  same  unpopular  church 
with  the  Jesuits.  The  Protestant  party  in  iMaryland, 
powerful  in  numbers,  and  upheld  by  the  laws  of 
England,  hated  to  see  a  Roman  Catholic  at  their 
head,  and  hence  turbulent  times. 

Some  justification  of  the  doings  of  the  Jesuit 
missionaries  may,  perchance,  be  attempted  on  the 
ground  that  the  servants  of  Christ  ought  to  obey 
God  rather  than  man.  We  ought,  indeed,  always 
to  obey  God  come  what  may :  but  there  was  no 
divine  command  that  the  Jesuits  should  be  among 
the  Maryland  adventurers  at  all.  Surely  if  the 
proprietary's  rules  were  such  that  the}-  could  not 
honestly  carry  them  out  they  had  small  right  to  be 
aboard  his  ships.     That  they  only  did  what  their 

" The  first  occasion  being  in  1644,  for  two  years;  the  second 
in  1655,  for  six  years  ;  and  the  third  in  1689,  for  exactly  a  quarter 
of  a  century. 


JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS.     1 57 

consciences  directed  them  to  do  can  readily  be 
admitted.  Nevertheless  it  would  have  been  better 
if  their  consciences  had  been  more  enlightened, 
since  such  a  ceremony  at  the  beginning  of  their 
voyage  was  well  calculated  to  provoke  religious 
strife  and  dissension.  To  say  nothing  of  prayers 
to  the  Blessed  Virgin  for  her  protection,  what 
did  the  average  British  Protestant  know  of  St. 
Ignatius  ?  Or  what,  if  he  knew  anything,  w^ould 
he  be  apt  to  think  of  him?  Then  as  to  the 
guardian  angels  of  Maryland,  Who  were  they  ? 
It  is  a  pious  opinion,  founded  on  Christ's  words, 
that  each  soul  has  a  guardian  angel,  but  where  have 
we  any  authority  for  the  idea  that  countries,  and 
especially  countries  inhabited  as  Maryland  then 
was  by  pagan  Indians,  are  sim.ilarly  favored  ? 

Surely  it  was  neither  wise  nor  charitable  to  hold 
such  a  religious  service  as  this  in  an  expedition  of 
which  "three-fourths  were  heretics,"  an  expedition 
sailing  under  the  flag  of  Anglican  England  to  es- 
tablish a  colony  where  Englishmen,  so  far  as  re- 
gards all  their  ecclesiastical  relations,  were  to  li\'e 
under  the  very  same  laws  which  they  had  been  liv- 
ing under  in  the  old  country.  Moreover  such  ac- 
tion was  not  just  to  Lord  Baltimore  himself,  as 
tending  at   the   outset  to   jeopardize  his  venture. 


158     JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS. 

For  he  was  the  real  head  of  the  expedition,  as  he 
was  its  sole  organizer,  and  the  bearer  of  a  large  por- 
tion of  the  expense  incurred  by  it.  Were  this 
thing  to  become  known  in  England  it  might  even 
cost  him  the  forfeiture  of  his  patent. 

I  suspect  that  to  this  very  act  of  disobedience  the 
Protestants  on  board  ascribed  the  troubles  that  fol- 
lowed, when  shortly  afterward  a  mighty  storm 
arose.  Hardly,  in  fact,  were  they  out  of  sight  of 
land  when  high  winds  springing  up  caused  a  great 
tempest  to  break  upon  the  ships.  Almost  instantly 
the  sea  was  as  a  wild  beast  seeking  in  its  blind  rage 
their  utter  destruction.  Huge  waves  rolled  over 
their  vessel,  and  the  blackness  of  the  night  added 
to  the  terror  of  the  adventurers.  The  Dove  was 
soon  seen  by  those  on  board  the  Ark  showing  a 
light  at  her  masthead.  It  was  the  signal  agreed 
upon  when  danger  was  imminent.  All  at 
once  this  light  disappeared  from  the  sight  of 
the  men  on  the  larger  vessel.  The  Dove  without 
doubt  had  orone  down  that  instant  with  all  on 
board,  and  gloomy  thoughts  filled  the  hearts  of  the 
voyagers  in  the  Ark.  But  they  had  to  look  to 
themselves,  for  although  they  had  a  ship  of  four 
hundred  tons  burden — than  which  "a  better  could 
not  be  built  of  wood  and  iron  " — they  were  in  the 


JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS.     1 59 

greatest  danger.  A  brief  lull  brought  only  a 
temporar}^  respite.  With  the  return  of  the  storm, 
redoubled  in  its  fury,  the  hopes  that  had  quickly 
risen  as  quickly  vanished  away,  for  it  really  seemed 
as  if  "  all  the  malicious  spirits  of  the  storm  and  all 
the  evil  genii  of  Maryland  had  come  forth  to  battle 
against  them."  ^  Evidently  Maryland's  guardian 
angels  were  not  doing  their  duty.  It  was  now  the 
last  day  of  November,  and  many  of  them  feared  it 
would  be  their  own  last  day.  Clouds  blacker  than 
ever  were  rapidly  accumulating.  To  increase  their 
terror  a  sunfish  appeared  swimming  with  great 
efforts  against  the  course  of  the  sun."  ^  A  fearful 
omen  this.  Nor  did  they  think  it  proved  a  false 
one.  For  the  rising  gale,  with  which  the  night 
closed  in,  had  ere  morning  become  a  furious 
hurricane,  striking  terror  into  the  hearts  of  the 
bravest.  Nothing  doubting  but  that  the  fate  of 
their  fellow-adventurers  on  the  Dove  was  only  too 
surely  awaiting  them  also,  they  committed  them- 
selves unto  prayer.  But  as  the  ship,  of  which  they 
had  now  lost  all  control,  with  its  solitary  mainsail 
torn  from  top  to  bottom,  "  drifted  about  like  a  dish 
in  the  water,  at  the  mercy  of  the  winds   and   the 

^Relatio,  P.  15. 
^Ibid,  P.  15. 


l6o     JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS. 

waves,"  ^^  they  patiently  awaited  the  end.  The 
Roman  Catholics  sought  comfort  in  offering  "  pra}-- 
ers  and  vows  in  honor  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  and 
her  Immaculate  Conception,  of  St.  Ignatius,  the 
Patron  Saint  of  Mar>^land,  St.  INIichael  and  all  the 
guardian  angels  of  the  same  country."  The  Pro- 
testants contented  themselves  with  calling  directly 
upon  God,  for  they  had  learned  from  Holy  Scrip- 
ture that  it  is  at  His  word  that  the  "  stormy  wind 
arises  which  lifteth  up  the  waves  thereof."  ^^ 

But  "  the  night  is  long  that  never  finds  the  day." 
The  wildest  storm  spends  its  force  at  length,  and 
dies  away  in  peace.  So  this  one.  Presently  came 
one  of  those  perfect  calms  at  sea  when  it  is  hard  to 
realize  that  the  depths  could  have  been  so  troubled, 
or  that  the  waves  were  ever  as  the  strong  mountains 
engaged  in  mortal  combat.  Then  hope  revived 
once  more,  and  although  the  vo\-agers  were  now 
mourning  the  loss  of  brave  companions,  their 
hearts  grew  lighter  as  all  immediate  danger  to 
themselves  passed  awa}'. 

Personally  we  have  much  reason  to  be  thankful 
for  that  storm,  since  it  is  due  to  it  that  we  have  the 
unimpeachable  authority  of  Father  White  himself  ^- 

^''Ibid,  P.  i6. 

^^  Psalm  107,  V.  25. 

^■'  Relatio.  P.  16. 


JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS.     l6l 

for  saying  that  the  object  of  the  voyage,  so  far  as  he 
and  his  brethren  were  concerned,  was  to  preach 
to  the  heathen.  For  when  "praying  more  fer- 
vently than  was  his  usual  custom,"  he  set  forth 
to  Christ  the  Lord,  to  the  Blessed  Virgin,  St. 
Ignatius  and  the  angels  of  Maryland,  that  the 
purpose  of  the  journey  was  to  glorify  the  blood  of 
the  Redeemer  in  the  salvation  of  barbarians,  and 
also  to  raise  up  a  kingdom  for  the  Saviour.  The 
storm  abating  upon  the  offering  up  of  this  prayer, 
he  "  understood  much  more  clearly  the  greatness  of 
God's  love  towards  the  people  of  Mar^dand,"  ^^  to 
whom  he  had  been  sent  to  minister. 

Favorable  winds  blowing  steadily  towards  the 
south  and  southeast  took  the  adventurers  along  the 
shores  of  Spain,  past  the  straits  of  Gibraltar  and 
the  Madeiras,  and  on  to  the  Canaries,  then  called 
the  Fortunate  Isles.  Sailing  thence  they  came  to 
anchor  in  a  large  bay,  where  there  was  nothing  to 
be  feared  except  the  calms  which,  with  dry  humor, 
they  remarked  were  "  exhausting  to  the  supplies  of 
navigators." 

It  was  now  the  Festival  of  the  Nativity  of  our 
Lord,  and  in  order  "  that  that  day  might  be  better 
kept  wine  was  given  out ;  and  those  who  drank  of  it 

^^Ibid,  P.  17. 


1 62     JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS. 

too  freely  were  seized  next  day  with  a  fever  ;  and 
of  these  not  long  afterwards  about  twelve  died, 
among  whom  were  two  Catholics."  "The  loss  of 
Nicholas  Fairfax  and  James  Bearfoot"  continues 
the  writer  "  was  deeply  felt  among  us."  ^^  Had  the 
day  been  properly  kept  this  sad  loss  of  twelve  men 
of  the  company  would  never  have  occurred.  Yet 
observe  how  this  very  incident  indirectly  confirms 
the  truth  of  the  historian's  statement,  that  there 
was  a  ver}^  large  preponderance  of  Protestants  in 
this  expedition.  Twelve  died,  of  w4iom  only  two 
were  Roman  Catholics. 

The  cup  of  the  adventurers  was  not,  however,  to 
be  one  of  unmixed  bitterness.  Judge  of  their 
unutterable  joy,  as  they  presently  saw  the  little 
Dove,  which  for  six  weeks  they  had  regarded  as 
lost,  sailing  gallantly  into  the  harbor.  There  was 
then  a  happy  reunion  of  parted  friends,  and  the 
company  on  the  Ark  soon  heard  how  on  that 
eventful  night,  when  they  supposed  the  little 
pinnace  had  gone  down  with  all  on  board,  that  she 
had  simply  run  before  the  driving  storm  back  to 
the  Scilly  Islands,  there  to  remain  until  the  ocean 
o^rew  calm  agfain. 

After  the  reappearance  of  the  Dove  no  further 

mishaps  occurred,  and  the  reverend  historian  chats 
^'Ibid,  P.  21. 


JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS.     1 63 

pleasantly  about  the  various  places  they  stopped  at 
after  leaving  Barbadoes,  with  its  corner  prices  for 
provisions,  its  excessively  warm  climate  and  its 
wonderful  cabbage  with  a  stalk  two  hundred  and 
eighty  feet  high  ;  its  pine-apple — "  the  queen  of 
fruits  " — with  its  spicy  taste  "  like  that  of  straw- 
berries mixed  with  wine  and  sugar  ;  "  and  Metalina, 
with  its  savages  fat  and  shining  with  red  paint, 
who  knew  not  God,  and  devoured  human  flesh, 
having  not  long  before  disposed  of  several  English 
interpreters  in  that  way.  Soon  they  sighted  the 
Carribee  Islands  of  Guadaloupe,  and  Montserrat,  so 
called  from  the  shape  of  its  rough  mountains,  with 
its  colony  of  Irishmen.  Refugees  were  these  Irish- 
men from  ecclesiastical  tyranny,  for  they  had  been 
banished  from  Virginia  on  account  of  professing 
the  Roman  Catholic  faith.  Special  charms  must 
Montserrat  have  possessed  for  their  co-religionists 
on  the  Ark  and  the  Dove.  Yet  on  they  went  until 
they  reached  Moevius,  with  its  pestilential  air  and 
fevers ;  then  on  to  St.  Christopher's,  where  they 
spent  ten  days.  Here  they  saw  land  for  the  last 
time  till,  on  the  twenty-seventh  of  February,  1634, 
they  reached  Point  Comfort  in  Virginia,  "  full  of 
apprehension,  lest  the  English  inhabitants  should 

be  plotting  against  them."  ^^     Evidently  the  adven- 
^''Idid,  p.  30. 


164     JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS. 

tiirers  had  heard  of  the  first  Lord  Baltimore's 
treatment  of  the  Virginians,  and  feared  that  condign 
punishment  might  be  visited  on  them. 

"Suspicion  always  haunts  the  guilty  mind  ; 
The  thief  doth  fear  each  bush  an  officer. ' ' 

Their  apprehensions  were  groundless.  The  col- 
onists of  Virginia  had  been  most  arbitrarily 
deprived  of  a  part  of  their  land  by  the  king. 
Nevertheless,  if  not  genuinely  loyal  to  their  sover- 
eign lord,  they  were  at  least  politic  enough  to 
follow  his  instructions  to  the  letter.  And  the  new 
arrivals  had  no  need  to  complain  of  any  lack 
of  warmth  in  their  welcome.  Indeed  after  being 
kindly  entertained  for  eight  or  nine  days  "  by  the 
Virginians  they  parted  from  them  with  regret." 
So  kindly  were  they  treated  that  George  Calvert, 
a  brother  of  Lord  Baltimore,  and  one  of  the  gentle- 
men adventurers  decided  to  remain  there.  Here, 
too,  they  saw  Clayborne,  back  from  his  unsuc- 
cessful visit  to  England.  With  little  tact  Leonard 
Calvert  seized  the  opportunity  of  reminding  him 
that  he,  with  the  people  of  Kent  Island,  were  now 
subjects  of  the  Lord  Proprietary  of  Mar}' land,  and 
should  acknowledge  his  jurisdiction.  Clayborne, 
contending  that  Cecilius  Calvert's  charter  did  not 
give  him  any  rights  on  Kent  Island,  whose  inhabi- 


JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS.     1 65 

tants  had  even  been  represented  in  the  Virginia 
legislature,  declined  obedience.  Leonard  Calvert 
replied  by  forbidding  Clayborne  to  trade  on  the 
Chesapeake  without  a  license  from  himself. ^^  Clay- 
borne  retorted  by  drawing  a  lively  picture  of  Indians 
waiting  for  Leonard's  scalp,  and  the  scalps  of  his 
companions.^"  Undeterred,  however,  by  the  dangers 
thus  described  on  the  third  of  March  the  travelers 
set  sail  for  the  Potomac  River,  to  which  a  favorable 
breeze  rapidly  bore  them,  having  been  over  three 
months  on  the  voyage. 

As  they  coasted  along  the  Maryland  shore,  their 
first  view  of  the  country  went  far  to  confirm  the 
marvellous  statements  of  the  Account.  Vv^ith  the 
Potomac  they  were  delighted.  Never  had  they 
beheld  a  larger  or  more  beautiful  river.  They  had 
always  thought  of  the  Thames  as  a  royal  river. 
Other  rivers  might  perchance  be  grander,  even,  as 
Abana  and  Pharpar  were  grander  to  the  Syrian 
Captain  than  the  rushing  stream  of  Jordan.  But 
the  Thames  was  without  a  rival.  Flowing  steadily 
from  its  home  in  the  Cotswold  Hills  through  the 
meadows,  and  beside  the  country  towns  of  the 
Midlands,    till    at   length    it   bears   on   its   stately 

^^  Neill's  Founders  of  Maryland,  P.  49. 
^'Anderson,  Vol.  II,  P,  121. 


1 66     JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS. 

waters  the  shipping  of  mighty  London,  it  is 
emphatically  England's  river;  her  historic  river, 
her  ideal  river,  as  dear  to  her  sons  as  the  Jordan  to 
the  Hebrews,  or  Father  Tiber  to  the  Romans  :  But 
now  its  glory  had  departed.  "The  Thames" 
sadly  confesses  the  historian,  "  seems  a  mere  rivu- 
let in  comparison  with  the  Potomac."  Then,  too, 
the  Potomac  was  not  disfigured  with  swamps, 
but  had  firm  land  on  each  side.  Moreover,  fine 
groves  of  trees  appeared,  not  choked  with  briars 
and  bushes  and  undergrowth,  but  growing  at 
intervals  as  if  planted  by  the  hand  of  man,  so  that 
one  might  drive  a  four-horse  carriage  through  the 
trees. 

The  arrival  of  the  adventurers  had  not  been 
unobserved  by  the  natives,  who  fully  aroused  now 
began  to  line  the  shores.  At  night  fires  blazed 
through  the  whole  countr>^,  while  messengers  were 
dispatched  in  all  directions  to  report  that  "a  canoe, 
like  an  island,  had  sailed  up  the  Potomac  with  as 
many  men  as  there  were  trees  in  the  woods."  Yet 
despite  the  troops  of  Indians  in  their  war-paint  and 
feathers  the  adventurers,  sailing  up  the  Potomac 
about  forty  miles,  brought  their  ships  to  anchor  off 
St.  Clement's  Island, ^^^  and  forthwith  landed. 

^®  This  Island  does  not  now  appear  on  the  maps. 


JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS.     1 67 

On  the  same  day,  being  tlie  Day  of  the  Annun- 
ciation of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary — the  25th  of 
March — in  the  year  1634,  the  priests  celebrated 
mass  on  the  island  after  the  Roman  ritual,  "  a  thing 
which  had  never  been  done  before  in  that  part  of 
the  world."  "After  we  had  completed  the  sacri- 
fice," continues  the  historian,  "we  took  upon  our 
shoulders  a  great  cross,  which  we  had  hewn  out  of 
a  tree,  and  advancing  in  order  to  the  appointed 
place,  with  the  assistance  of  the  governor  and  his 
associates,  and  the  other  Catholics,  we  erected  a 
trophy  to  Christ  the  Saviour,  humbly  reciting,  on 
bended  knees,  the  Ivitanies  of  the  Sacred  Cross  with 
great  emotion."  ^^  This  is  the  Latin  version.  The 
tone  of  the  narration  forbids  the  charitable  assump- 
tion that  all  this  was  done  "  as  privately  as  may 
be."  And  thus,  as  the  voyage  had  begun  with  an 
act  of  disobedience,  so  it  ended.     The  version  for 

^^This  is  the.  Latin  account,  Relatio,  P.  33.  The  English 
account  runs  as  follows  :  ' '  We  went  to  a  place  where  a  large 
tree  was  made  into  a  cross  and  taking  it  on  our  shoulders  we 
carried  it  to  the  place  appointed  for  it.  The  Governor  and  com- 
missioners putting  their  hands  first  unto  it,  then  the  rest  of  the 
chiefest  Adventurers.  At  the  place  prepared,  we  all  kneeled 
down  and  said  certain  prayers  ;  taking  possession  of  the  country 
for  our  Saviour  :  and  for  our  sovereign  Lord  the  King  of  Eng- 
land. ' '  The  entire  absence  of  any  mention  of  the  mass  in  this 
service  is  noteworthy,  as  also  is  any  special  mention  of  the 
Roman  Catholics,  and  their  Litany  of  the  Holy  Cross. 


1 68     JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS. 

the  investors  contains  no  mention  of  the  Roman 
ceremonial. 

There  is  in  existence  a  picture  illustrative  of  a 
scene  at  the  close  of  this  first  celebration  of  mass 
by  the  Jesuits,  and  I  cannot  forbear  quoting  from  a 
description  of  it : —  "  Here,  on  the  side  of  a  hill 
that  slopes  to  the  waters  of  the  bay  the  colonists  and 
the  Indians  are  assembled.  x\t  the  left  of  the 
picture  is  erected  an  altar,  appropriately  draped 
and  ornamented  with  various  holy  symbols,  and  on 
which  the  just-used  sacramental  vessels  are  placed. 
A  rude  cross  of  wood,  freshly  hewn,  surmounts  the 
altar.  Father  White,  in  the  robes  of  his  order, 
stands  upon  the  upper  step  of  the  altar  w4th  arms 
upraised  and  hands  outstretched,  as  if  invoking  the 
blessing  of  heaven  on  all  present.  A  little  lower 
and  on  one  side  of  the  altar,  an  attendant  swings 
the  sacred  censer,  from  which  the  faint  smoke  of 
incense  ascends.  In  the  centre  of  the  picture  stands 
Governor  Calvert  and  the  chief  of  the  Indians, 
pledging  friendship  to  each  other."  In  connection 
with  this  picture  it  might  be  well  to  recall  Lord 
Baltimore's  express  instructions  to  the  Roman 
members  of  the  expedition  :  ''  All  acts  of  Roman 
Catholic  religion  to  be  done  as  privately  as  may 
be,  and  this  by  land  as  well  as  by  sea." 


JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS.     1 69 

In  the  fact  of  the  adventurers  having  a  simple 
religious  service  there  was  nothing  calling  for 
special  notice.  It  was  a  proceeding  in  entire 
harmony  with  the  pious  and  simple-hearted  ways 
of  those  tim.es.  Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert  had  fol- 
lowed precisely  the  same  course  in  Newfoundland. 
Sir  Francis  Drake  did  the  same  in  California,  and 
the  magnificent  stone  cross  on  the  spot  stands 
today  for  a  witness  of  the  fact.  So,  too,  had  other 
Englishmen  acted  on  that  same  coast  nearly  thirty 
years  before.  On  the  day  after  Newport,  the  com.- 
mander  of  the  first  expedition  for  the  settlement  of 
Virginia,  landed  near  the  Falls  of  James  River,  the 
Holy  Communion  was  celebrated  and  the  erection 
of  a  Church  was  immediately  begun.  ^^  Had  the 
Maryland  adventurers  been  influenced  by  even  less 
worthy  motives  these  religious  services  would  not 
have  been  wanting.  Religion  entered  more  or  less 
largely,  in  theory  at  all  events,  into  all  the  doings 
of  those  times.  Whether  they  were  merchants 
seeking  trade,  or  soldiers  bent  on  conquest,  it  was 
all  the  same.  "  In  the  name  of  the  Prince  of 
Peace  "  said  the  gifted  Robertson  speaking  of  the 
conquerors  of  Peru,  "  they  ratified  a  contract  of 
which  plunder  and  bloodshed  were  the  objects.  "  ^^ 

^"  Wilberforce,  Page  122. 

'^^  Peru,  Vol.  I,  Page  237.     America,  Vol.  Ill,  Page  5. 


170     JOURNEY  OF  THE  ADVENTURERS. 

It  was  thus  in  a  religious  spirit,  and  in  accordance 
with  the  example  of  all  who  had  preceded  them 
to  America,  that  the  Maryland  adventurers  said 
their  prayers,  and  took  possession  of  the  country 
for  their  Saviour  and  for  the  English  king. 

This  claim  on  behalf  of  the  King  of  England 
seems  strange  when  we  remember  that  the  king 
had  claimed  that  land  already,  and  of  "  his  special 
grace,  certain  knowledge  of  and  mere  motion  had 
given,  granted  and  confirmed "  it  to  Cecilius 
Calvert  as  Eord  Proprietary.  Apparently  this 
was  a  necessary  legal  requirement  for  the  proper 
conveyance  of  the  property,  and  not  therefore  to  be 
regarded  as  either  unreasonable  or  superfluous. 
But  there  was  no  need  to  claim  the  land  for  the 
Saviour.  Maryland  had  been  already  claimed  for 
Christ  when  she  was  part  of  Virginia.  But  that 
nothing  might  be  wanting  to  make  the  land  a 
Christian  land,  no  great  way  to  the  northward  from 
where  the  adventurers  stood  lay  Kent  Island,  with 
its  English  Church,  where  Sunday  by  Sunday  the 
Gospel  had  been  faithfully  preached  by  a  priest  of 
the  English  Church. 


CHAPTER  X. 
FOUNDING  A  CITY  TO  DWELL  IN. 

1634. 

Say,  strangers,  for  Vv'hat  cause 

Explore  you  ways  unknown  ?     Or  whither  tends 

Your  voyage  here  ?    Whence  came  you  ?    From  what  race 

Derived  ?    And  bring  you  hither  peace  or  war  ? 

— Trapp.  "Virgii<." 

According  to  the  Instructions  which  the  lord  pro- 
prietary had  given  the  adventurers,  the  time  had 
now  arrived  for  them  to  seek  out  "  a  fit  place  in  his 
lordship's  country  "  where  they  might  settle  down, 
— a  fit  place  being  defined  as  first,  healthful  and 
fruitful ;  next,  easily  fortified ;  and,  thirdly,  conven- 
ient to  trade  both  with  the  English  and  the  savages/ 

Upon  finding  such  a  place  the  people  were  to  be 
forthwith  assembled  together,  and  his  majesty's 
letters  patent  publicly  read  by  the  secretary.  This 
being  done,  the  proprietary's  commission  to  the 
governor  and  councillors  was  next  to  be  read ; 
followed  by  a  short  declaration  to  the  people  as  to 

^  Calvert  Papers,  II,  P.  123. 


172  FOUNDING    A   CITY   TO    DWELL    IN. 

the  intention  of  the  proprietar}^  towards  his  planta- 
tion. From  this  declaration  the  emigrants  learned, 
apparently  for  the  first  time,  that  in  undertaking  to 
plant  Maryland  Lord  Baltimore  was  seeking  "  first, 
the  honor  of  God,  by  endeavoring  the  conversion 
of  the  savages  to  Christianity,  second!}',  the 
augmenting  of  his  ma3est}-'s  empire  and  dominions 
in  those  parts  of  the  world  by  reducing  them  under 
the  subjection  of  the  Crown,  and  thirdly,  the  good 
of  such  of  his  countr>anen  as  were  willing  to 
adventure  their  fortunes,  and  themselves  in  it.^ 
How  singularly  disinterested  this  lord  proprietary- 
is  !  Perhaps,  however,  we  ought  not  to  take  too 
literally  the  somewhat  inflated  language  of  a 
courtly  document  of  the  seventeenth  centur}  > 
especially  as  our  doing  so  will  make  it  very  diffi- 
cult to  acquit  Lord  Baltimore  of  professing  a  pious 
disinterestedness,  which  he  certainly  did  not 
possess.  He  was  as  far  as  possible  from  givirig 
himself  any  serious  concern  about  the  Indians  and 
their  salvation.  Except  in  so  far  as  he  depended  on 
them  for  his  supply  of  beaver  skins  and  other  com- 
modities, he  hardly  seemed  to  be  aware  of  their 
existence.  Indeed,  so  conspicuously  was  this  the 
case   that   no   great   while   after^vards   one  of  the 

2  Calvert  Papers,  I,  P.  136. 


FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO     DV/ElvL   IN.  1 73 

Jesuit  fathers  somewhat  siieeringly  commented  on 
the  manifest  lack  of  all  that  pious  interest  in  the 
infidels,  "heretofore  so  much  pretended,"^  "there 
being  no  care  taken  at  all  to  promote  their  conver- 
sion." ^  Having  selected  a  place  "to  settle  the 
plantation,"  the  governor  and  councillors  were  next 
to  choose  an  ample  space  for  the  building  of  a  fort 
within  which,  or  near  to  it,  they  were  to  build,  for 
the  seat  of  his  lordship,  or  his  representative,  a 
convenient  house,  v/ith  a  church  or  chapel  adjacent. 
Near  unto  these  buildings  they  w^ere  also  to  make 
choice  of  a  place  "  to  seat  a  tov/n."  '' 

To  successfully  carry  out  these  instructions 
Leonard  Calvert  at  once  entered  into  communication 
with  the  Indians.  Leaving  the  larger  vessel  at  St. 
Clement's,  he  sailed  in  the  smaller  one  up  the 
Potomac  as  far  as  the  Indian  village  of  Piscataway, 
about  eighty  miles  from  the  bay,  a  little  abo^^e,  but 
nearly  opposite  Mount  Vernon.  In  this  village  he 
found  a  Captain  Henry  Fleet  from  Virginia, 
engaged  in  trade  with  the  Indians.^     Fleet  from 

"^  Calvert  Papers,  I,  P.  166. 

*  Calvert  Papers,  I,  P.  162. 

5  Calvert  Papers,  I,  P.  138. 

^  Fleet  had  lived  so  long  among  the  Indians,  first  as  a  captive 
and  then  as  a  freeman,  that  he  had  learned  to  speak  their 
language  better  than  his  own.  Fleet's  foiirna I,  Neill,  Founders 
of  Maryland,  P.  37. 


174  FOUNDING    A   CITY   TO     DWELL    IN. 

the  first  seems  to  have  been  very  favorably  impressed 
by  the  Englishmen,  who  had  so  suddenly  appeared 
upon  the  scene,  and  to  have  been  very  anxious  to 
ser\^e  them  in  any  way.  It  was  fortunate  that 
he  was  so  kindly  disposed,  for  the  chief  of  the 
Piscataway  Indians  had  assembled  five  hundred 
warriors  to  oppose  their  landing.  Under  Fleet's 
influence,  however,  the  hostile  chief  w^as  so  far 
conciliated  as  to  say,  that  he  would  neither  bid 
them  go  nor  bid  them  stay.  This  done,  Fleet  at 
once  led  the  governor  and  his  party  to  the  St. 
]Mary's  River,  which  flows  into  the  Potomac  about 
twelve  miles  from  its  mouth,  assuring  them  that 
they  would  find  there  an  ideal  site  for  a  city.  He 
had  spoken  well.  Sailing  up  the  St.  ]\iars''s  about 
six  or  seven  miles,  they  came  to  a  village  of  the 
Yaocomico  Indians,  so  charmingly  situated  that  in 
all  Europe  they  could  scarcely  have  found  one  to 
surpass  it  for  beauty  of  position.  The  site  looked 
over  "  a  harbor  where  five  hundred  ships  might  ride 
securely  at  anchor."  ^  It  was  Fleet's  old  trading 
post  and,  in  former  years,  the  scene  of  his  captivity 
among  the  Indians."^  Delighted  beyond  measure 
with  the  place  they  immediately  decided  to  settle 

'  McMahoii,  P.  253. 

^Neill,  Founders  of  Maryland,  P.  11  and  12. 


FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO    DWELL   IN.  1 75 

down.     Purchasing  the  village  from  the  Indians, 

together  with  thirty  square  miles  of  territory,  to 

which  they  gave  the  name  of  Augusta  Carolina — 

the   present   St.   Mary's  County — the   adventurers 

"  tooke  possession  of  the  place  and  named  the  town 

St.  Maries."     Forthwith  they  began  to  build  their 

fort,  their  church  and  their  city,  according  to  their 

instructions.     In  the  meantime  the  priests  fitted  up 

one   of   the   wigwams    to   serve    as   a   chapel   for 

themselves  and  their  co-religionists.     This  wigwam 

was  the  first   place   of    Christian   worship   in    St. 

Mary's,   although   not  the  first  in  Maryland,  that 

honor  belonging  to  the  English  Church  on   Kent 

Island.^ 

Thus  was  founded,  on  the  27th  of  March,  1634, 

the  city  of  St.  Mary's,  which  for  sixty   years  was 

^  It  is  very  difficult  to  understand  why  our  Roman  Catholic 
brethren  so  persistently  claim  to  have  been  first  in  Maryland. 
Because  even  had  the  Calvert  expedition  been  Roman  Catholic 
it  would  not  have  given  them  this  honor,  either  politically  or 
ecclesiastically.  Yet  in  an  address  by  Rev.  Dr.  Conaty,  Rector 
of  their  University  in  Washington,  D.  C,  delivered  in  Baltimore 
on  "  Pilgrims'  Day,"  March  31,  1897 — described  by  the  press  as 
a  scholarly  effort — these  words  are  reported  to  have  been  said  : 
"  We  hear  much  to-day  about  the  Catholics  and  their  plots  to 
run  America.  Have  men  forgotten  history,  or  do  they  read  it  ? 
Catholics  discovered  and  first  colonized  America.  A  hundred 
cities  and  a  thousand  lakes  and  streams  bear  Catholic  names. 
They  were  first  in  Maryland."  The  orator's  own  question 
here  occurs  to  the  mind  : — "  Have  men  forgotten  history,  or  do 
they  read  it?  " 


176  FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO     DWELL    IN. 

the  seat  of  the  government  of  Maryland,  and  the 
headquarters  of  a  rival  commonwealth  in  the  new 
world  to  the  commonwealths  of  Virginia  and 
Massachusetts. 

Their  beautiful  dwelling  place  charmed  the 
emigrants.  That  little  tract  of  country  which 
they  had  secured  from  the  Yacomicoes  was  theirs  as 
no  other  land  was  in  all  America.  It  v/as  home. 
Previous  to  their  purchase  of  it  from  the  Indians  it 
had  been  but  as  the  rest  of  the  country',  just  earth 
and  water,  where  perchance  they  might  settle 
down  and  find  a  means  of  subsistence.  Any  other 
spot  the  day  before  w^ould  perhaps  have  suited  them 
just  as  well,  but  now  that  the3'had  chosen  it  no 
other  place  was  so  sacred  to  their  eyes  ;  their 
hearts  went  out  to  it,  their  thoughts  were  centred 
upon  it.  There  patriotism  had  already  kindled  its 
fire,  which  now  burned  steadily  and  brighth'  in 
every  man's  heart.  For  in  Augusta  Carolina,  after 
weary  months  of  voyaging  across  the  broad 
Atlantic,  they  had  at  last  found  their  hearth  stone. 
No  longer  were  they  homeless  men.  They  had 
a  place  on  earth  which  they  could  call  their  own. 

Fleet  did  not  go  unrewarded.  On  ]\Iay  9th, 
a    few    weeks    after    the  colonists    landed,    there 


FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO    DWELL   IN.  1 77 

was  assigned  to  him  two  thousand  acres  on  St. 
George's  River  in  return  for  his  good  offices.^" 

As  soon  as  the  adventurers  were  installed  in 
their  new  home,  the  Governor  of  Virginia,  Sir  John 
Harvey,  came  to  pay  them  a  state  visit.  There 
came  also  about  the  same  time  the  King  of  the 
Patuxents.  The  King  of  the  Yaocomicoes  was 
already  on  the  spot.  In  honor  of  the  occasion  "the 
Ark's  great  guns  spoke  aloud."  The  Indians  were 
filled  with  wonder  and  admiration.  With  such 
auspicious  beginnings  was  the  birth  of  the  infant 
settlement  attended.  Soon  work  began  in  earnest. 
The  land  was  surveyed,  and  the  surrounding 
country  carefully  mapped  out,  and  divided  into 
hundreds.  Trees  were  felled,  fields  planted,  homes 
built,  streets  laid  out,  and  .soundings  taken  of  the 
rivers  and  bays.  Everything  was  done  in  the 
most  practical  and  business-like  manner.  Soon  the 
settlers  were  able  to  abandon  the  ships  which  had 
so  long  sheltered  them,  and  to  take  up  their  dwell- 
ing on  the  land.  Social  courtesies  with  the  Indians 
were  exchanged  and  good  feelings  engendered. 
The  Indian  warriors  showed  the  strangers  how  to 
hunt  the  game  with  which  the  woods  abounded, 
while  the  women  taught  them  how  to  cook   the 

^°  Neill,  Founders  of  Majylaiid,  P.  17. 


178  FOUNDING    A   CITY   TO    DWELL   IN. 

maize  which  their  fields  produced  so  luxuriantly. 
Trade  commenced,  and  all  things  promised  success. 
No  clouds  darkened  the  sky  in  those  first  days  of 
colonial  life  as  the  Marylanders  went  forth  to  their 
work  and  to  their  labor,  until  the  evening. 

And  yet,  if  one  could  have  taken  a  bird's  eye 
view  of  Mar}dand,  it  would  have  been  evident  that 
other  problems  than  those  of  the  choice  of  a  site 
for  immediate  settlement,  of  present  support  and 
future  trade,  would  soon  press  upon  the  settlers  for 
a  solution.  To  say  nothing  of  the  probability  of 
internal  dissensions  arising  out  of  the  peculiar 
composition  of  the  colony,  certain  external  difii- 
culties  were  looming  ahead  very  threateningh,-. 
Throughout  the  entire  country  were  scattered  the 
villages  of  many  Indian  nations  with  whom  they 
could  not  always  hope  to  keep  the  peace.  Then 
there  were  besides  settlements  of  other  Old  World 
adventurers  who,  like  themselves,  had  come  to  try 
their  fortunes  in  the  New  World.  With  the 
growth  of  the  colony  these  various  settlements 
would  be  brought  into  competition  with  them, 
and  perhaps  into  bitter  antagonism.  INIuch  evi- 
dently depended  on  the  attitude  which  the  new 
arri\'als  would  adopt,  both  towards  the  Indian 
tribes  and  the  earlier  settlers. 


FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO     DWELL    IN.  1 79 

As  to  the  Indians,  the  problem  was  of  course  no 
new  one.  It  had  been  before  every  colony  which 
had  ever  settled  in  America  from  the  days  of  Cabot 
down.  But  the  presence  of  other  white  men, 
earlier  in  the  field  than  they,  was  a  new  feature. 
Manifestly  in  dealing  with  these  first  comers 
exceptional  tact  would  be  needed  on  the  part  of  the 
Marylanders,  and  especially  of  Lord  Baltimore 
himself.  Unhappily,  not  only  Lord  Baltimore,  but 
even  the  Marylanders,  failed  to  appreciate  the 
gravity  of  the  situation.  Looking  upon  those  early 
settlers  as  mere  intruders,  they  so  acted  that  strife 
was  at  once  stirred  up  between  them. 

These  earlier  settlements  were  at  some  distance 
from  the  home  of  Baltimore's  followers.  The  first^^ 
in  importance,  though  perhaps  not  in  priority  of 
foundation,  was  Clayborne's  settlement  on  Kent 
Island.  When  the  Marylanders  were  at  James- 
town, Leonard  Calvert,  as  we  have  seen,  had  taken 
the  opportunity  of  notifying  Clayborne  that  he  was 

^^  In  1629  one  Godyn,  a  Hollander,  had  purchased  a  territory 
on  the  western  bank  of  the  Delaware  River,  about  the  present 
sites  of  "Wilmington  and  Newcastle.  Six  years  previously  this 
region  had  been  occupied  by  Hollanders,  who  had  built  a 
fort  called  Fort  Nassau,  and  were  preparing  to  maintain  their 
position  against  all  comers.  Then  too,  earlier  perhaps  than  all, 
was  the  settlement  on  Palmer's  Island  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Susquehanna. 


l8o  FOUNDING    A   CITY   TO     DWEI.L   IN. 

now  a  member  of  the  ]\lar}'land  colony,  and  must 
relinquish  all  relations  with,  and  dependence  upon, 
Virginia.  The  result  might  have  been  fore-seen. 
This  was  the  letting  in  of  strife.  Upon  receiving 
Leonard's  report  of  the  interview  Baltimore  failed 
to  exhibit  his  usual  good  sense.  Writing  out  to 
his  brother  he  ordered  him^  to  seize  Clayborne,  and 
keep  him  in  close  confinemient  at  St.  j\Iar}' 's,  and 
forthwith  "  to  take  possession  of  his  plantation  on 
the  Isle  of  Kent.  "  ^^  Baltimore's  haste  was  the 
more  unnecessar}^,  and  even  inexcusable,  because 
just  previously  to  the  setting  out  of  his  expedition 
it  had  been  decided  that  the  matters  in  dispute 
betv/een  himself  and  Clayborne  should  be  settled 
by  a  court  of  law.^^ 

In  the  meantime,  probably  at  Clayborne's  request, 
a  meeting  of  the  Virginia  Council  had  been  held,  at 
which  Clayborne  had  inquired  how  he  should 
demean  himself  in  respect  to  Lord  Baltimore's 
patent,  and  his  deputies  then  seated  in  the  bay.  It 
was  answ^ered  by  the  board  that  "  they  wondered 
why  any  such  question  was  made  ;  they  knew  no 
reason  why  they  should  render  up  the  right  of  that 
place,  the    Isle    of    Kent,   more    than   any   other 

^-Neill,  Founders  of  Maryland,  P.  51. 
^•■^  Ibid,  P.  59. 


FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO    DWELI<   IN.  l8l 

place  formerly  given  to  this  colony  by  his  majesty's 
patent,  and  that  the  right  of  my  lord's  grant  in 
England  being  yet  undetermined,  we  are  bound  in 
duty  and  by  our  oaths  to  maintain  the  rights  and 
privileges  of  this  colony."  ^^ 

This  was  in  March,  1634.  In  July  of  that  year 
the  king  told  Lord  Baltimore  that  it  was  contrary 
to  justice  and  his  own  intentions  to  dispossess 
Clayborne  and  his  colonists  of  their  lands.^^  Again 
on  October  8th  the  king  wrote  to  the  Virginia 
Council,  and  all  Lieutenants  of  Provinces  in 
America  requiring  them  to  assist  "the  planters  in 
Keetish  Island,  that  they  may  peaceably  enjoy  the 
fruits  of  their  labors,  and  forbidding  Lord  Balti- 
more, or  his  agents,  to  do  them  any  violence."  ^^ 

It  was  not  denied  by  the  Virginians  that  the 
little  island  lay  within  the  limits  of  Lord  Baltimore's 
grant,  but  as  the  Maryland  charter  only  covered 
places  "  hitherto  uncultivated "  they  asserted 
that  Kent  Island  was  untouched  by  the  grant. 
The  proprietary,  however,  contended  that  as  Clay- 
borne  had  nothing  more  than  a  license  to  trade  on 

^^  Ibid,  P.  49.     Sparks,  P.  107. 

^5  Allen,  History  of  Maryland,  P.  17. 

^^Neill,  Fotuiders  of  Maryland,  P.  51.  On  April  4tli,  1638, 
the  Commissioners  of  Plantations  reported  the  right  and  title 
to  the  Isle  of  Kent  to  be  absolutely  with  him,  P.  55. 


l82  FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO    DWELL   IN. 

Kent  Island,  granted  under  the  seal  of  Scotland,  he 
could  not  claim  proprietary^  rights  on  the  island. 
It  was  therefore  a  case  of  disputed  ownership.  But 
Baltimore  made  the  mistake  of  resorting  to  arms 
instead  of  waiting  for  the  judgment  of  the 
courts.^"  All  this  was  the  more  to  be  regretted 
because,  however  well  founded  his  claim  to  the 
possession  of  Kent  Island  might  have  been,  the 
first  settlers  there  could  hardly  fail  to  regard  him, 
armed  though  he  was  with  a  royal  charter  as  a  man 
who  had  stolen  away  their  birthright.  Unfor- 
tunately lyord  Baltimore  throughout  displayed  the 
spirit  and  temper  of  those  old  barons  who  followed. 

The  good  old  rule, 
the  simple  plan, 

That  they  should  take  who  have  the  power, 

And  they  should  keep  who  can. 

Perhaps  in  addition  he  was  animated  by  personal 
feeling  against  Clayborne,  and  of  this  unhappily 
there  appears  too  much  evidence  to  leave  it 
a  mere  supposition.  In  fact  the  existence  of  a 
personal  enmity  on  the  part  of  Lord  Baltimore 
was  only  too  apparent,  due  of  course  to  his 
knowledge  of  the  strained  relations  which  existed 
between    Clayborne   and   his  father  owing,  in  the 

^^  Allen,   History  of  Blaryland,   P.    17  ;    Neill,   Founders  oj 
Maryland,  P.  51. 


FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO    DWEIvL   IN.  1 83 

first  place,  to  Clayborne's  attitude  over  the  oath 
question,  and  in  the  next  place  to  his  unceasing 
opposition  to  his  father's  petition  for  a  portion  of 
Virginia.  It  was  at  all  events  acting  under  his 
orders,  dated  September  4th,  1634,  that  the  Mary- 
landers  proceeded  to  extremities,  the  immediate 
effect  being  a  battle  on  the  Pocomoke  River — "  the 
first  naval  battle  in  America  " — between  two  pin- 
naces, the  St.  Helen  and  the  St.  Margaret,  under 
the  command  of  Cornwaleys,  and  a  shallop  from 
Kent  Island  under  Lieutenant  Warren.  In  the 
fight  one  of  the  St.  Mary's  men  was  killed. 
Among  the  Kent  Islanders  Lieutenant  Warren 
himself  was  killed  and  two  of  his  men.  Later  on 
another  battle  took  place  which  also  ended  disas- 
trously for  Clayborne,  one  of  the  men  taken  being 
subsequently  hanged  "  for  felony  and  piracy." 
Thus  was  the  Maryland  colony,  in  the  infancy  of 
its  existence,  hurried  into  the  commission  of  acts 
of  such  a  high-handed  character  as  were  well 
calculated  to  cost  Lord  Baltimore  his  province. 
This  result  seems  to  have  been  feared,  for  immedi- 
ately afterwards  Jerome  Hawley  sailed  to  England 
to  defend  these  doings  as  best  he  could.  He 
arrived  in  London  in  June  and  appeared  without 
delay  before  the  Privy  Council. 


184  FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO    DWELL    IN. 

But  far  more  disastrous  was  the  final  result  of 
the  policy  of  violence.  By  it  Clayborne  became 
the  bitter  and  lifelong  enemy  of  Lord  Baltimore, 
whose  mistake  cost  him  many  times  more  than  all 
Kent  Island  was  worth. 

Eventually,  at  a  meeting  of  the  Lord  Commis- 
sioners for  Plantations  held  at  Whitehall,  4th  of 
April,  1638,  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbur^^  being 
in  the  chair,  the  disputed  territor}^  was  declared 
to  be  the  property  of  Lord  Baltimore.  As  an 
illustration,  however,  of  the  uncertainty  of  the  law's 
judgments,  the  very  same  plea  which  Clayborne 
now  put  forth  ineffectively,  was  put  forth  very 
effectively  by  William  Penn  some  years  later.  The 
cases  were  exactly  parallel,  and  the  judgments 
exactly  reversed.  ^'^ 

It  is  a  relief  to  turn  away  from  scenes  of  strife 
and  contention  among  brethren  to  witness  the  con- 
duct of  the  Mar>dand  adventurers  towards  the 
Indians.  Here  a  scene  is  presented  which  it  is  a 
pleasure  to  contemplate.  There  was  peace,  at  any 
rate  at  first,  and  for  some  time  afterwards,  between 
the  red  men  and  the  strangers,  and  an  intercourse 
mutually  beneficial.  Later  on  came  war,  but  no 
sign  of  that  could  have  been  detected  in  the  kindly 
relations  which  at  first  existed.     The  meeting  of 


FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO     DWELL   IN.  185 

the  two  races  was  all  that  could  be  desired.  If  the 
white  men  received  a  generous  welcome  to  the  land 
broad  enough  for  all,  the  Indians  in  return  were 
recipients  of  even  a  greater  blessing.  From  the 
white  men  they  heard  the  story  of  the  Gospel — of 
how  Jesus  had  died  to  save  them  from  their  sins. 
True,  the  Christian  teacher  had  much  to  encourage 
him,  for  the  heathen  were  very  willing  to  be 
taught,  having  learned  by  earlier  dealings  with 
Englishmen  to  love  and  trust  them.  And  if 
they  were  not  exactly  holding  out  their  babies  for 
baptism  it  was  only  charitable  to  suppose  that  this 
was  because  they  had  not  fully  perceived  the 
necessity  of  the  new  birth  by  water  and  the  Spirit, 
where  it  might  be  had. 

These  Indian  nations  have  all  utterly  disappeared 
from  Maryland,  and  scarce  a  trace  of  them  remains  ; 
little  more  than  the  names,  strange  to  our  Anglo- 
Saxon  ears,  of  rivers  and  places  which  one  meets 
with  everywhere.  For  had  it  not  been  for  the 
Indians  we  should  not  now  be  speaking  of  Potomac 
and  Patuxent;  Pocomoke  and  Pomonkey,  of  Wico- 
mico and  Nan  je  moy.  What  these,  and  many 
other  similar  Indian  names,  mean  is  too  often  a 
secret  buried  in  the  graves  of  a  vanished  race.    Yet 


1 86  FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO    DWELL    IN. 

it  is  a  satisfaction  to  know  that  while  they  tarried 
with  us  they  were  not  spiritually  neglected. 
Unfortunately  few  records  remain  to  tell  us  what 
was  done,  and  as  the  records  we  have  are  derived 
mainly  from  Jesuit  sources,  it  is  entirely  unreason- 
able to  expect  any  graphic  account  of  Anglican 
missionary  work  from  such  a  quarter.  The  Jesuits 
have  not  failed  to  give  us,  as  was  natural,  somewhat 
lengthy  accounts  of  their  own  earnest,  evangelistic 
labors.  But  as  their  accounts  are  so  mixed  up 
with  legends  of  the  miraculous,  it  is  hard  to  say 
how  much  is  to  be  believed — a  circumstance  which 
makes  the  whole  unreliable.  But  although  the 
Church  w^hich  first  preached  Christ,  made  the  first 
Indian  convert,  baptized  the  first  Indian  chief,  and 
claimed  as  a  son  the  first  Apostle  of  the  Indians,  all 
in  the  country'  of  which  Maryland  once  formed  a 
part,  has  no  tale  to  tell  of  splendid  heroism  and 
apostolic  zeal  on  the  part  of  her  children  who 
followed  the  leadership  of  Leonard  Calvert,  yet  we 
cannot  believe  that  she  altogether  failed  in  her  duty 
towards  the  red  men  of  Maryland. 

These  Maryland  Indians  were  not  of  one  tribe  or 
nation  only,  but  of  many  tribes.  Yaocomicoes,  Sus- 
quehannas,  Choptanks,  with  many  others — their 
names    seemed    legion.     Of    various    dispositions 


FOUNDING    A   CITY   TO     DWELL   IN.  1 87 

towards  the  adventurers,  it  was  with  the  peaceable 
and  well  disposed  Indians  of  southern  Mar^dand — 
who  were  of  the  southern  branch  of  the  Algonquin 
family,  which  had  its  villages  from  Canada  to  South 
Carolina  and  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Rocky 
Mountains — that  the  colonists  first  came  into  con- 
tact. Fortunate  indeed  was  it  for  the  infant  colony 
that  it  had  its  early  dealings  with  these  tribes  and 
not  with  the  wild  and  warlike  Susquehannas,  who 
belonged  to  the  fierce  Iroquois  nation  of  the  north 
and  west,  as  in  that  case  the  m.eeting  between  the 
white  men  and  the  red  men,  when  the  former  were 
but  a  feeble  folk,  would  not  have  terminated  in  the 
gift  of  a  few  beads  and  trinkets,  hatchets  and  yards 
of  cloth,  in  exchange  for  thirty  square  miles  of 
territory,  and  the  making  of  a  convenient  peace 
between  them.  Thrice  happy  in  their  immediate 
neighbors  were  the  first  colonists  of  Maryland. 

The  contrast  has  often  been  pointed  out  between 
the  way  in  which  the  settlers  in  New  England 
dealt  with  the  natives  with  whom  they  came  in 
contact,  and  the  way  in  which  Marylanders  dealt 
with  them.  To  the  New  Englanders  the  Indians 
were  Canaanites  to  be  rooted  out  of  the  land. 
Joshua,  the  leader  of  the  armies  of  Israel,  was  their 


1 88  FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO    DWELL   IN. 

model.  There  was  much  truth  in  the  quaint 
distich, 

**At  first  they  fell  on  their  knees, 
Then  they  fell  on  the  aborigines." 

And  this  notwithstanding  the  Christian  purpose  of 
their  colonization  enterprise,  the  first  seal  of  ]\Iass- 
achusetts  representing  an  Indian  giving  utterance 
to  the  words,  "  Come  over  and  help  us." 

Now  not  Joshua,  in  his  fierce  extirpating  zeal,  as 
carrying  fire  and  sword  he  spread  desolation  far 
and  wide  through  the  enemies'  country,  but  Abra- 
ham in  his  comm.ercial  dealings  with  the  Hittites, 
when  he  bought  the  field  of  Machpelah,  was  the 
model  of  the  Marylanders.  In  a  like  spirit  with 
that  of  Abraham,  they  bought  from  the  Indians, 
wigwams,  corn  and  land,  for  all  of  which  they  paid 
in  such  things  as  the  natives  valued  most.  No 
wrong  was  done.  No  blood  was  shed.  It  has 
been  insinuated  that  the  white  men  were  o^ettino- 
the  best  of  the  bargain.  Perhaps  they  were,  but 
there  is  no  proof  of  it.  Migrator}'  bands  of  Indians 
have  not  much  use  for  land,  and  the  axes  and 
cloth  and  ornaments  meant  much  to  them.  Besides, 
it  is  on  record  that,  owing  to  the  incursions  of  the 
Susquehannas,  the  Yaocomicoes  were  glad  to  get 
rid  of  their  land  at  any  price.     In  fact  at  the  time 


FOUNDING   A   CITY   TO    DWELL   IN.  1 89 

when  the  Maryland  adventurers  suddenly  appeared 
in  their  village,  they  were  on  the  point  of  leaving 
it  forever. 

We  may  willingly  admit  that  the  conduct  of  the 
Marylanders  was  dictated  as  much  by  prudence  as 
by  a  sense  of  justice,  and  the  teaching  of  religion. 
Their  interest  lay  in  conciliating  the  Indians,  not 
in  alienating  them.  War  meant  ruin  to  both,  and 
the  white  men  knew  it.  It  was  not,  therefore  the 
Indians'  land  they  were  buying  with  those  hatchets 
and  trinkets,  but  their  favor  and  good  will.  We 
commend  their  course.  Peace,  if  it  be  peace  with 
honor,  is  to  be  sought  at  any  price. 

It  is  also  true  that  the  tribes  were  so  disunited 
that  a  combination  of  their  forces  against  the 
newcomers  was  never  even  possible,  although  had 
they  been  united  they  would,  in  the  event  of  war, 
have  been  more  than  a  match  for  the  colonists. 
In  this  respect  there  is  a  remarkable  parallel  between 
the  state  of  things  which  existed  in  Maryland  then, 
and  the  state  of  things  which  exists  in  India  now. 
The  English  could  not  hold  India  for  a  day  were 
the  millions  of  Hindustans  united.  But  disunited, 
speaking  different  languages,  of  different  religious 
beliefs,  having,  in  fact,  nothing  in  common  save 
residence  in  the  same  country,  a  handful  of  English- 


190  FOUNDING    A   CITY   TO     DWELL   IN. 

men  control  Hindustan.  So  it  was  in  ]\Iar\'lancl. 
Before  a  solid  foe  the  Maryland  settlements  would 
have  gone  down  in  a  moment ;  but  there  was  no 
union  among  the  Indians,  and  the  little  settlement 
on  the  Potomac  grew  and  flourished. 


CHAPTER  XL 

SHEEP    WITHOUT    A     SHEPHERD:    THE 

BEGINNINGS   OF   THE  MARYLAND 

CHURCH. 

1635- 

Thou  art  ever  present,  Power  supreme  ! 

Not  circumscribed  by  time,  nor  fix'd  to  space. 

Confined  to  altars,  nor  to  temples  bound 

In  wealth,  in  want,  in  freedom  or  in  chains. 

In  dungeons  or  on  thrones,  the  faithful  find  Thee  ! 

— Hannah  Moore. 

The  parting  Instructions  of  Lord  Baltimore 
betray  the  existence  among  the  adventurers  of 
diverse  interests,  the  presence  of  the 

' '  little  rift  within  the  lute 
Which,  widening  more  and  more, 
Makes  all  the  music  mute." 
The  adventurers  were  as  a  house  divided  against 
itself  ;  part  crying,  "  I  am  of  Paul,"  and  part,  "And 
I  of  Cephas."     In  modern  phraseology :     "I  am  of 
Canterbury  ;  "   "  And  I  of  Rome."  ' 

For  a  time,  however,  there  was  far  less  friction 
than  might  have  been  looked  for.     This  was  due 

^I  Cor.,  iii,  4. 


192      SHEEP  WITHOUT  A  SHEPHERD. 

to  several  causes.  In  the  first  place  there  was  evi- 
dently the  kindest  feeling  on  the  part  of  the 
Anglican  Churchmen  towards  their  Roman  Catho- 
lic fellow-adventurers.  This  was  entirely  natural. 
Men  who  had  spent  months  together  on  an  ocean 
voyage — an  experience  which  always  brings  people 
closely  together — would  not  be  apt  to  be  extreme 
to  mark  what  was  done  amiss  where  no  personal 
loss  or  injury  was  inflicted.  It  is  true  that  in  com- 
mitting the  expedition  at  the  outset  to  the  guardi- 
anship of  Roman  Catholic  saints  and  unknown 
angels,  a  wrong  key-note  had  been  struck  by  the 
priests,  and  one  which  made  it  easier  for  them, 
when  they  sighted  land,  to  pursue  a  similar  course 
in  giving  to  the  headlands  they  passed,  and  to  the 
waters  over  which  they  sailed,  Roman  Catholic 
names.  Not  that  this  was  in  itself  any  very  im- 
portant matter,  but  it  certainly  was  a  significant 
one.  The  strong  tower  does  not  show  the  direction 
of  the  wind,  but  the  bending  reed  does.  It  was 
therefore,  entirely  in  a  natural  way  that  the  Jesuits 
passed  on  to  celebrating  mass  in  that  "  ample 
manner  "  which  had  once  stirred  to  its  depths  the 
protestantism  of  the  Rev.  Erasmus  Stourton,  in  the 
elder  Baltimore's  time.  Still,  though  acting  en- 
tirely contrar}'   to  the   commands  of  the  lord  pro- 


SHEEP  WITHOUT   A  SHEPHERD.  1 93 

prietary,  no  offence  was  probably  taken  by  the 
Protestants.  To  them  their  fellow-voyagers'  pen- 
chant for  naming  the  various  headlands,  and  points 
of  interest  along  the  coast,  after  defunct  bishops 
and  mythical  personages  would  seem  nothing  more 
than  an  odd  fancy,  at  which  there  was  nothing  that 
even  zealous  Protestants  could  be  justly  scandal- 
ized. 

An  evidence  of  kindly  feeling  on  the  part  of  the 
Protestants  is  to  be  seen  in  the  way  in  which  Cap- 
tain Fleet  showed  how  absolutely  free  he  was  from 
all  sectarian  bias  and  narrow-minded  prejudice,  for 
it  was  by  his  aid  that  the  missionaries  were  enabled 
to  preach  the  Gospel  to  the  Indians.  He  was  their 
interpreter  at  a  time  when  they  were  as  powerless 
to  influence  for  good  or  for  evil  the  red  men  of 
Maryland,  as  they  would  have  been  had  they  re- 
mained in  Europe.  Witnessing  that  neighborly  act 
one  naturally  exclaims  :  "  Behold  how  good  and 
joyful  a  thing  it  is  for  brethren  to  dwell  together 
in  unity."  It  sounds  somewhat  unkind  to  read 
shortly  afterwards  :  "  We  do  not  put  much  confi- 
dence in  the  protestant  interpreters."  ^  Mistrust 
begets  mistrust,  as  love  begets  love.  Whether  they 
trusted  this  particular  Protestant  interpreter  or  not, 

''Relatio  liineris.     P.  41.     Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  7. 


194  SHEEP   WITHOUT   A   SHEPHERD. 

he  was  the  one  man  who  had  made  all  their  com- 
munications with  the  Indians  possible,  and  to 
whom  alone  they  owed  the  beautiful  site  of  their 
city.  Unhappily  this  was  not  the  only  indication 
of  the  Jesuits'  real  sentiments  towards  their  Pro- 
testant fellow-countr>anen.  A  little  later  on  they 
describe  one  of  them,  an  Anglican  named  Snow, 
as  an  obstinate  heretic,  his  offence  being  that  he 
was  a  consistent  Churchman,  who  did  all  in  his 
power  to  keep  his  brethren  firm  in  the  faith  of 
their  fathers.^  But  as  these  opinions  about  their 
Protestant  neighbors  were  not  made  public,  no  ill- 
will  resulted. 

Another  cause  for  the  absence  of  friction  was  to 
be  found  in  the  character  of  the  first  missionaries 
themselves.  They  were  not  men  of  intemperate 
zeal,  utterly  lacking  in  tact  and  judgment.  Indeed, 
if  all  who  went  out  with  the  first  expeditions  had 
been  like  Fathers  White  and  Altham,  there  might 
have  been,  apart  from  their  antagonism  to  the 
instructions  of  Lord  Baltimore,  and  the  inability 
they  labored  under,  incidental  to  the  Jesuit  position, 
to  recognize  the  Catholicity  of  their  Anglican 
brethren,  little  or  nothing  whatever  to  find  fault 
with.     In  their  willingness  to  live  and  let  live  ;  in 

^  Neill,  Foimders  of  Maryland,  P.  99. 


SHEEP   WITHOUT   A   SHEPHERD.  1 95 

the  sweetness  of  their  lives  ;  and  in  the  constancy 
of  their  faith,  these  first  missionaries  were  an 
example  nnto  their  brethren,  who  followed  them 
into  Mar>4and.  Had  the  later  arrivals  been  like 
them,  Lord  Baltimore  would  probably  never  have 
had  occasion  to  regret  their  presence  in  his  colony. 
Good,  honest  men,  according  to  their  light,  were 
those  fathers,  and  full  of  missionary  zeal.  To  be 
sure,  their  zeal  sometimes  led  them  into  errors  of 
judgment,  but  nevertheless,  even  on  the  part  of 
those  who  differed  from  them,  it  would  have  been 
strange  if  there  had  not  been  a  feeling  of  respect 
towards  men  so  self-denying  and  self-sacrificing  as 
they  were.  Alone  of  all  men  in  Maryland  they 
were  not  seeking  riches  for  themselves,  and  they 
deserve  a  very  high  place  in  Maryland  history.  When 
not  an  English  clergyman  was  found  to  go  out  to  the 
colony,  although  the  greater  part  of  the  adventurers 
were  members  of  the  English  Church,  to  their 
honor  be  it  spoken,  these  men  volunteered  and 
w^ent.  It  would  therefore  ill  become  Church- 
men to  condemn  them.  Embarking  on  the  same 
enterprise  together,  their  future  was  singularly 
unlike.  One  was  taken,  and  the  other  left.  On 
Kent  Island  Father  Altham  had  soon  run  his 
course,  and  was  laid  to  rest  in  his  grave  beside  the 


196  SHEEP   WITHOUT   A   SHEPHERD. 

Chesapeake,  while  Father  White  lived  on  to  see  him- 
self, after  strange  vicissitudes  and  some  painful 
sufferings,  an  old  man  among  men,  awaiting  the 
Master's  call  in  the  England  of  his  birth,  rather  than 
in  the  Mar^dand  of  his  adoption,  to  which  he  all  in 
vain  had  longingly  hoped  to  return,  and  where  he 
hoped  also,  like  his  brother  Jesuit,  that  he  might 
find  his  last  resting  place/  With  the  Puritan  Eliot 
in  New  England,  and  the  Anglican  Whitaker  in 
Virginia,  he,  too,  deserv^ed  the  title  of  "The 
Apostle  of  the  Indians." 

Let  me  now  invite  attention  to  the  actual  con- 
dition of  the  religious  life  of  the  unshepherded 
Church  of  England  settlers  during  the  first  years  of 
the  colony's  existence.  I  think  we  shall  see  that, 
bad  as  things  were,  they  might  easily  have  been 
very  much  worse  ;  at  least  if  we  may  venture  to 
judge  from  the  few  materials  at  our  command. 
For  in  the  paucity  of  our  information  the  descrip- 
tion Canon  Bright  has  given  us  of  the  early  Church 
in  Britain  may  almost  verbatim  be  given  of  the 
early  Church  in  the  Province  of  ]\Iaryland  :  "Dur- 
ing the  Roman  period  the  Church  of  Britain  shows 
like  a  valley  wrapped  in  mists,  across  which  some 
fitful  lights  irregularly  gleam.  We  know  nothing 
^  Ibid,  P.  104. 


SHEEP  WITHOUT  A  SHEPHERD.       1 97 

of  its  episcopal  succession,  very  little  of  its  internal 
life,  or  of  its  efforts  at  self-extension.  We  read  of 
some  of  its  buildings  as  having  been  known  to 
exist  at  Canterbury,  Caerleon,  Verulam,  and  we 
may  add,  on  that  most  interesting  spot,  then 
girdled  in  by  waters  and  known  as  Ynys-vitryn,  or 
Avalon,  '  the  glassy  isle '  or  the  Isle  of  Apples,  our 
present  Glastonbury,  where  the  tall  green  peak  of 
the  tor  of  St.  Michael  looks  down  on  the  statel}- 
ruins  of  the  great  Abbey  which  succeeded  to  the 
'  old  church,'  made  originally  of  twisted  wands,  and 
ranking  amiong  the  oldest  sanctuaries  in  Britian."  ^ 
So  too  in  Maryland,  during  its  "Roman  period," 
or  to  speak  more  correctly  its  Jesuit  period,  under 
the  irregular  gleaming  of  the  fitful  lights  we  read 
something  of  its  buildings,  and  something  also  of  its 
internal  life.  Much  more  we  could  hardly  expect 
to  find,  since  religious  observances  could  not  form  a 
large  feature  in  the  daily  life  of  people  who  were 
struggling  for  a  foothold  and  a  livelihood.  And 
yet  the  Churchmen  at  St.  Mary's  soon  had  their 
church  in  which  they  worshipped  God  and  in 
which  from  time  to  time  ordained  clergymen,  or  in 
their  absence  qualified  laymen,  led  their  devotions. 
It  has  been  suggested  that  this  was  a  union  church, 
^  Early  English  Church  History,  Bright,  Chapter  i,  P.  10. 


198  SHEEP   WITHOUT   A   SHEPHERD. 

which  the  Protestants  and  Romanists  had  joined 
forces  to  build,  and  in  which  they  alternately 
worshipped.*^  Given  a  strong  imagination  the 
suggestion  is  quite  a  reasonable  one.  A  vivid 
imagination  is  a  convenient  thing  to  have  on  hand. 
Those  who  have  it  will  see  no  improbability 
in  the  suggestion.  Most  Churchmen,  however, 
will  continue  to  believe  that  this  was  the 
church  which  had  been  built  in  accordance  with 
the  instructions  of  the  lord  proprietary,  its  erection 
having  been  determined  upon  by  him  as  much, 
we  may  presume,  to  satisfy  the  law,  as  out  of 
regard  for  the  spiritual  needs  of  the  settlers.  It 
was  probably  this  same  church  which  a  few  years 
afterwards  Leonard  Calvert,  the  governor,  and  I\Ir. 
Lewger,  the  secretary,  determined  to  purchase,  with 
other  buildings  and  land  adjoining,  in  the  name 
and  for  the  use  of  the  lord  proprietary."  The  pur- 
chase was  not  consummated  for  good  and  wise 
reasons  which  we  shall  see  hereafter. 

Shortly  after  the  erection  of  this  building  for  the 
benefit  of  the  St.  Mar}''s  church  people,  other 
churches  began  to  be  built  across  the  river,  as  the 
settlers,  moving   farther  west,   covered  with  their 

^  Davis,  Day  Star,  Pp.  33,  34. 

"^  Md.  Hist.  Soc.  F.  P.,  No.  9,  Streeter,  P.  1S3. 


SHEEP   WITHOUT   A   SHEPHERD.  1 99 

homesteads  the  whole  of  the  peninsula  now  known 
as  St.  Mary's  and  Charles  Counties,  so  that  within 
five^  years  of  their  first  landing  there  was  a  church 
at  Poplar  Hill,  in  what  was  known  as  St.  George's 
Hundred.^ 

But  who  ministered  in  those  churches  ?  Were 
there  any  Anglican  clergy  in  Maryland  ?  On  Kent 
Island,  there  certainly  was  one  clergyman — the 
Rev.  Richard  James — at  the  time  of  the  arrival  of 
the  adventurers.  It  may  be  that  there  had  been 
more  than  one  on  the  island,  even  before  Mr.  James' 
pastorship,  for  the  records  speak  of  "  allowances  for 
ministers."  ^^  But,  alas,  nowhere  else  in  the  St. 
Mary's  colony  was  there  one  to  be  found.  Truly 
those  shepherdless  adventurers,  more  in  number 
than  the  parishioners  of  many  an  English  Rector, 
presented  an  affecting  spectacle,  exposed  on  the 
one  hand  to  the  various  temptations  incidental  to 
early  colonial  life,  when  men  are  apt  to  act  as  if 
God  had  been  left  behind,  and  on  the  other  hand 
to  the  seductions  of  Romanism.  For  these  un- 
shepherded  men  were  of  the  same  flesh  and  blood 
as  the  people   of   Christian   England.     They  had 

8  Ethan  Allen,  History  of  Maryland,  P.  22. 
^  The  term  '  hundred  '   indicates  the  growth  of  population — 
it  describes  a  territory  whereon  a  hundred  families  were  settled. 
10  Ridgely,  The  Old  Brick  Churches  of  Maryland,  P.  6. 


200      SHEEP  WITHOUT  A  SHEPHERD. 

come  forth  from  quiet  Bnglisli  villages  to  seek 
their  fortune  in  the  new  world.  No  doubt  many 
an  entrancing  vision  had  floated  before  their  eyes. 
They  had  pictured  themselves,  ere  they  had  left 
old  England's  shores,  gaining  wealth  and  station 
in  the  new  country,  and  they  had  even  had  visions 
of  how  they  would  spend  the  eventide  of  life. 
Some  day  they  would  come  home  again  to  the  old 
village,  to  the  old  home,  to  sleep  in  the  old  church- 
yard— God's  acre — where  their  parents,  and  their 
kinsfolk  and  acquaintance  lay.  It  was  all  very 
well,  but  there  was  another  side  to  the  picture, 
one  little  thought  of  then.  It  was  not  all  gain. 
Some  things  they  could  not  carr}^  away  with  them. 
In  the  years  to  come  it  might  be  different,  but  at 
first,  and  for  long,  they  would  sadly  miss 

' '  the  grey  Church-tower 
And  the  sound  of  the  Sabbath  bell." 

To  be  sure,  they  did  not  leave  religion  itself 
behind.  God  was  everywhere.  That  thought 
would  comfort  them  in  their  loneliness  and  in  their 
exile.  They  could  still  pray  to  Him,  still  feel  His 
presence  and  His  power,  still  say  with  truth  : 

I  know  not  where  His  islands  lift 
Their  fronded  palms  in  air  ; 
I  only  know  I  cannot  drift 
Beyond  His  love  and  care. 


SHEEP   WITHOUT   A   SHEPHERD.  20I 

It  Speaks  well  for  these  expatriated  children  of 
the  English  Church  that,  notwithstanding  their 
shepherdless  condition  they,  did  not  allow  their 
churches  to  stand  unused  from  month  to  month, 
as  so  many  mere  sad  and  silent  memorials  of  their 
spiritual  mother's  neglect.  They  themselves  held 
services  in  them  as  best  they  could  ;  some  of  the 
more  devoutly  inclined,  and  better  educated  of  their 
number,  regularly  conducting  these  services.  ^^ 
There  is  something  really  inspiring  in  the  sight 
of  these  self-exiled  Churchmen  cut  off  from 
the  m.eans  of  grace,  bra.vely  endeavoring  to  supply 
their  pastorless  condition,  doubtless  buoyed  up  with 
the  hope  that,  at  no  distant  day,  some  godly  min- 
ister would  come  and  settle  in  their  midst. 

But  although  the  adventurers  neither  at  the 
beginning,  nor  for  many  years  afterwards,  had  any 
resident  clergyman  to  minister  unto  them,  it 
would  be  entirely  unreasonable  to  suppose  that 
none  ever  visited  the  settlement.  Indeed,  remem- 
bering that  the  colony  stood  about  mid- way  between 
the  Kent  Island  and  the  Jamestown  settlements,  it 

^^  We  know  from  the  account  of  the  dispute  over  the  volume 
of  sermons  in  Mr.  Lewis'  house,  that  the  Churchmen  gathered 
regularly  at  their  place  of  worship  in  St.  Mary's.  Moreover, 
by  an  early  proclamation  of  the  Governor,  the  inhabitants  were 
required  to  provide  themselves  with  guns,  powder  and  shot, 
before  going  around  to  the  church  or  chapel. 


202  SHEEP   WITHOUT    A    SHEPHERD. 

would  be  impossible  to  conceive  of  the  clergy 
settled  in  those  places  as  never  visiting  the  ]\Iary- 
landers.  On  the  contrary  we  doubt  not  that  as 
often  as  opportunity  offered  they  would  be  found 
among  the  shepherdless  flock  of  St.  IMary's.  We 
may  pretty  safely  infer  that  one  such  visit  was 
made  on  or  about  the  twenty-sixth  of  Ixlarch,  1638. 
On  that  day  a  license  was  granted  to  William 
Edwin  to  marry  Mary  Wliitehead.^-  But  fortunately 
we  are  not  left  to  surmises.  The  records  tell  of 
the  visit  to  St.  Mar>^'s  of  the  Rev.  Thomas  White 
of  Virginia,  who,  on  the  occasion  of  his  visit,^'^ 
made  William  and  Mar}.-  man  and  wife.  Perhaps 
on  the  whole  the  colony  might  easily  have  been  in 
a  yet  worse  position. 

Then,  too,  the  absence  of  any  appearance  of  per- 
secution of  these  shepherdless  ones  is  a  pleasing 
feature  of  these  early  days,  contrasting  as  it  does 
most  favorably  with  the  doings  of  those  in  author- 
ity, not  very  long  afterw^ards,  when  evil  counsels 
prevailed.  Clearly  at  first  there  was  no  ill-will 
between  the  two  parties,  but  each  attended  to  its 
own  business.  The  main  body  of  the  colonists 
building    their    church,    and    securing    clergymen 

^'  Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  9,  Streeter,  P.  27S. 
i3Ridgely,  The  Old  Brick  Churches,  P.  42. 


SHEEP   WITHOUT   A   SHEPHERD.  203 

wherever  they  could,  from  Kent  Island  or  Vir- 
ginia ;  and  the  Jesuit  missionaries  ministering  to 
the  small  handful  of  their  co-religionists  at  St. 
]^,Iary's,  and  making  preparations  by  learning  the 
language,  and  otherwise,  to  prosecute  their  mission- 
ary work  among  the  Indians.  But  notwithstanding 
the  lack  of  ordained  teachers,  these  were  the  hal- 
cyon days  of  the  colony,  and  like  the  halcyon  days 
of  the  primitive  Church  they  v/ere  not  to  endure 
for  long.  With  the  next  batch  of  adventurers 
came  the  evil  genius  of  the  colony.  This  was 
none  other  than  "  Mr.  Thomas  Cople}^,  Esq,"  ^^  a 
Jesuit  who  is  credited  with  having  fallen  from 
grace  by  marrying  a  nursery  maid,  but  who,  never- 

^*  Thomas  Copley  ' '  Esquire, ' '  arrived  in  the  province  on  the 
8th  of  August,  1637.  Notwithstanding  his  title  of  Esquire, 
Mr.  Copley  was  a  Jesuit  priest.  He  seems  to  have  been  much 
engaged  in  business,  and  did  not  neglect  the  worldly  interests 
of  himself  and  his  companions.  In  presenting  claims  for  lands, 
according  to  the  Conditions  of  Plantation,  in  proportion  to 
the  number  of  persons  brought  over  by  him,  he  includes  the 
names  of  "  Mr.  Andrew  White  "  and  "Mr.  John  Altham,"  who 
were  also  Jesuit  priests,  and  who  had  come  over  with  the  first 
colonists.  According  to  the  specifications  of  his  claims,  there 
came  with  White  and  Altham  in  1634,  twenty-eight  servants, 
for  whom  he  was  entitled  to  six  thousand  acres  of  land  ;  and 
with  himself  nineteen,  for  whom  he  claimed  four  thousand 
acres  more,  making  ten  thousand  in  all.  He  was  also  engaged 
in  sending  out  goods  for  trade  with  the  Indians.  See  Streeter, 
Md.  Hist,  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  9,  P.  98. 


204  SHEEP   WITHOUT   A   SHEPHERD. 

tlieless,  notwithstanding  this  mesalliance,  acquired 
a  potent  voice  in  Maryland  affairs/^ 

Of  Thomas  Copley,  and  his  influence  in  Mar}^- 
land,  it  might  be  well  for  me  here  to  say  a  word  or 
two.  The  actual  part  that  this  man  played  in 
Maryland  affairs  has  never  been  properly  under- 
stood. It  has  been  customary  with  some  historians 
to  regard  Clayborne  as  Maryland's  "evil  genius."  ^^ 
With  far  more  propriety  and  justice  that  bad 
pre-eminence  may  be  claimed  for  Father  Copley. 
If  he  had  started  on  his  career  in  Maryland  with 
the  avowed  intention  of  doing  as  much  evil  as  he 
could  to  the  cause  he  represented  he  could  scarcely 
have  succeeded  better  than  he  did.  It  was  a  most 
unfortunate  circumstance  for  his  co-religionists 
that  he  should  have  acquired  tlie  control  which  he 
did  of  Maryland  affairs.  Had  he  never  seen  Mary- 
land it  is  more  probable  that  his  brother  Jesuits 
could  have  done  a  lasting  work  among  the  earlier 
settlers.  Never  had  they  had  a  fairer  opportuity  of 
carrying  out  their  ideas  than  they  possessed  at  the 
foundation  of  Maryland.  Everything  was  in  their 
favor.  The  Anglican  Churchmen,  without  a 
priest  of  their  own,    were  an   unshepherded  flock, 

^^Neill,  Terra  Maricr,  P.  70. 
^^  Hawks,  P.  25,  and  others. 


SHEEP  WITHOUT  A  SHEPHERD.      205 

who  might  in  time  be  confidently  expected  to  join 
the  Roman  Church  if  the  Jesuits  in  their  dealings 
with  them  should  prove  wise  as  serpents  and  harm- 
less as  doves.  It  was  to  be  sure  a  strangely 
anomalous  position  for  the  English  Churchmen  in 
the  Maryland  colony  to  be  put  into,  a  position  so 
anomalous  indeed  as  to  attract  the  attention  of  the 
most  casual  observer.  By  law  they  w^ere  still 
members  of  the  English  Church,  and  the  Bishop  of 
London  was  still  their  diocesan.  But  the  Bishop 
of  London  was  three  thousand  miles  away,  and  at 
that  time  the  English  Court  had  no  conception  of 
the  rise  of  a  Greater  Britain  beyond  the  seas,  of 
which  such  expeditions  as  that  of  Lord  Baltimore 
was  but  one  of  unconscious  beginnings.  Conse- 
quently, the  adventurers  in  leaving  England  had 
cut  them.selves  off  from  communion  with  the  faith- 
ful. This,  unhappily,  was  not  an  unheard  of  ^^osi- 
tion  for  Englishmen  to  find  themselves  in ;  its 
counterpart  existing  in  other  infant  colonies.  But 
in  Maryland  there  was  in  the  presence  of  the  Jesuit 
priests  a  new  and  unique  element  of  danger,  with 
its  future  possibilities  of  endless  complications. 
Altogether  it  was  an  unfortunate  state  of  affairs, 
and  one  which  no  doubt  encouraged  Copley  to 
enter  upon  that  policy  of  aggression  which   ulti- 


2o6  SHKEP   WITHOUT   A   SHEPHERD. 

mately  brought  nothing  but  ruin  and  disaster  to 
the  Jesuits  themselves,  and  the  cause  they  repre- 
sented. 

A  thorough-going  ultramontane  in  spirit,  yet 
carefully  hiding  his  priestly  status  so  that  for  a 
time  it  does  not  even  seem  to  have  been  suspected 
by  the  colonists,  without  tact  or  judgment,  lacking 
both  the  wisdom  of  the  serpent  and  the  harm.less- 
ness  of  the  dove,  but  ever  the  power  behind  the 
throne,  Father  Copley  entered  upon  a  policy  of 
violence  where  gentleness  and  sweet  persuasiveness 
would  have  wrought  untold  wonders.  He  was  the 
worst  enemy  to  his  own  order  that  Maryland  saw 
in  the  early  years  of  the  Barons  of  Baltimore.  To 
him  the  old  fable  of  the  relative  power  of  the 
northern  blast  and  the  genial  influence  of  the 
southern  sun  might  have  taught  an  invaluable 
lesson.  But  that  lesson  he  never  learned.  And  so 
he  went  on  his  way,  trusting  to  the  arm  of  strength, 
and  sledge-hammer  blows  to  accomplish  results 
for  the  souls  of  men.  But  it  was  then  as  ever  : — 
"  Not  by  might,  nor  by  strength,  but  by  My  spirit, 
saith  the  Lord  of  Hosts." 

It  was  chiefly  due,  no  doubt,  to  Copley's  efforts 
that  the  few  Roman  Catholics  who  were  on  board 
the  Ark  and  the  Dove  had  accompanied  the  expe- 


SHEEP   WITHOUT   A   SHEPHERD.  207 

dition.  It  is  evident  that  when  Lord  Baltimore 
advertised  for  emigrants  the  Jesuit  Society  con- 
sidered that  it  had  in  his  new  plantation  a  favora- 
ble opportunity  of  extending  its  influence  in 
America  under  the  English  flag.  Maryland,  to  be 
sure,  did  offer  them  opportunities  in  this  direction 
denied  them  elsewhere.  New  England  was  for- 
bidden territory  to  them  ;  so  was  Virginia.  But 
the  Lord  Proprietary  of  Maryland  was  a  Roman 
Catholic,  and  with  him,  or  rather  with  his  relatives, 
they  had  great  influence.  What  might  not,  then, 
his  appeal  for  emigrants  augur  for  them  and  for 
their  Church  ?  Why  should  they  not  accept  the 
Lord  Baltimore's  terms  and  furnish  him  with  just 
the  settlers  his  province  needed  ?  The  terms  were 
good.^^  Two  hundred  acres  for  every  man  sent  out 
went  to  the  successful  agent.  The  society  became 
one  of   Lord   Baltimore's  recruiting  agencies  ;  its 

^"  McSherry,  P.  42,  "The  first  Conditions  were  issued  in  1633. 
For  every  five  persons  between  the  ages  of  fifteen  and  sixty,  two 
thousand  acres  of  land,  at  a  rent  of  four  hundred  pounds  of 
wheat— for  less  than  five  persons,  at  the  rate  of  one  hundred 
acres  for  each  man,  one  hundred  for  his  wife  and  each  servant, 
and  fifty  acres  for  each  child  under  sixteen,  at  a  rent  of  ten 
pounds  of  wheat  for  every  fifty  acres.  In  1635,  for  every  man 
brought  in,  a  grant  was  made  for  one  thousand  acres,  at  a  rent 
of  twenty  shillings.  Grants  of  one,  two,  and  three  thousand 
acres  were  erected  into  manors,  with  the  right,  to  their  owners, 
of  holding  Courts  Leet  and  Courts  Baron." 


2o8  SHEEP   WITHOUT   A   SHEPHERD. 

executive  officer  for  this  purpose  being  this  same 
Thomas  Copley,  whose  first  venture  as  an  emigra- 
tion agent  resulted  in  the  sending  to  Mar^-land  of 
not  less  than  twenty-eight  persons.  But  "  doth 
Job  serve  God  for  naught?  "  Father  Copley  sub- 
sequently presented  on  behalf  of  the  Jesuit  Society 
a  claim  against  Lord  Baltimore  for  six  thousand 
acres  of  Maryland  land.  Successful,  however,  as 
it  was,  this  process  of  acquiring  land  was  too  slow 
for  Copley's  energetic  soul.  He  himself,  with 
nineteen  more  emigrants  under  his  charge,  for 
whom  he  was  looking  for  four  thousand  more  acres 
of  land,  soon  afterwards  went  to  the  new  colony, 
where  he  inaugurated  so  specious  a  scheme  of 
securing  land  from  the  Indians,  that  had  it  eventu- 
ally succeeded,  Baltimore  would  soon  have  had  no 
land  to  call  his  owm  in  all  the  Province  of  Mary- 
land. But  even  Copley  was  not  a  match  for  Lord 
Baltimore. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

'^WHILE   THE  GOVERNMENT    IS    CATHO- 
LIQUE."  ' 

Sure  'tis  an  orthodox  opinion 
That  grace  is  founded  in  dominion. 

— BuTi^ER,  "Hudibras." 

With  Mr.  Copley's  advent  in  1637  the  relations 
existing  between  the  Anglicans  and  their  Roman 
Catholic  brethren  were  at  once  changed.  Copley 
was  of  an  energetic  nature  and  matters  were  not 
moving  fast  enough.  Putting  ships  in  charge  of 
angels,  naming  places  after  dead  men,  was  all  very 
well  in  its  way,  but  it  did  not  gain  converts.  The 
times  demanded  a  more  active  and  pra.ctical  propa- 
ganda. Consequently,  a  new  era  of  work  had  to  be 
inaugurated.  Aggressive  work  must  be  under- 
taken ;  the  enemy's  country  invaded  ;  sea  and  land 

1  See  Aid.  His.  Soc,  No.  28,  Calvert  Papers  No.  i,  Fage  166. 

It  is  curious  how  jealously  the  Roman  Catholics  in  common 
usage  appropriate  this  title  '  Catholic ' ,  because  in  their  own 
official  documents  they  style  their  Church  ' '  the  Roman  Catho- 
lic "  or  "  Holy  Roman  Church. ' '  Lord  Baltfmore  did  not  hesi- 
tate to  speak  of  it  as  Romish,  {See  Maryland  Archives,  Council 
I,  P.  1676,) 


210  "while  the  government  is  cathouque." 

compassed  to  make  a  proselyte.  Too  long  had  the 
sword  remained  in  the  scabbard,  and  the  standard 
of  the  Church  been  kept  out  of  sight.  Immedi- 
ately the  lot  of  the  unshepherded  flock  became  far 
from  enviable. 

To  be  sure,  Mr.  Copley  was  not  the  superior  of 
the  Jesuit  order  in  Maryland.  With  his  matrimo- 
nial record  against  him,  that  was  out  of  the  ques- 
tion. He  was  just  one  of  those  strong,  masterful 
men  who,  without  official  position,  simply  by  force 
of  character  wield  a  wide  influence,  and  who  have 
been  known  at  times  to  rule  even  the  holders  of 
sceptres.  Therefore  it  w^as  that,  following  upon  his 
arrival  the  policy  of  the  Roman  Catholics  suddenly 
became  one  of  aggression.  And  for  this  the  time 
was  opportune.  Kent  Island  was  shortly  afterwards 
subdued  by  order  of  Lord  Baltimore,  and  its  Pro- 
testant settlement  broken  up.  Among  the  suflterers 
was  Gertrude  James,  widow  of  the  English  Rector 
of  Kent  Island,  wdio  had  recently  died  while  on  a 
visit  to  England  in  company  with  Clay  borne.  "^ 
Mrs.  James  still  lived  on  the  island,  and  although 
justly  entitled  to  some  special  consideration  on 
account  of  her  husband's  position  and  work,  her 
cattle  and  all  she  had  were  sold  away  from  her'^ 

■^  Allen,  Md.    Toleration,  P.  29. 
'•'Ibid,  P.  30. 


''while  the  government  is  CATHOLIQUE."    211 

without  the  slightest  compunction.  It  was  a  cruel 
wrong.  But  a  worse  wrong  was  to  follow. 
Although  tried,  almost  beyond  endurance,  by  tem- 
poral misfortunes,  and  recent  bereavement,  she  had 
now  to  bear,  in  the  uprooting  of  her  husband's 
work,  what  v/as  probably  even  a  greater  trial  than 
the  loss  of  her  earthly  goods.  On  the  spot  where 
the  English  priest  had  so  lately  preached  and 
taught,  a  priest  of  the  Roman  Church  was  forcibly 
settled.  It  was  a  high-handed  proceeding  on  the 
part  of  its  authors,  and  one  likely  to  bring  its 
nemesis.  By  Copley  it  was  no  doubt  regarded  as  a 
mere  incident  in  the  plan  of  campaign.^ 

Other  incidents  of  a  somewhat  similar  nature  now 
began  to  follow  with  startling  rapidity,  all  breath- 
ing the  intolerant  spirit  of  the  new  regimxc  and 
pointing  to  the  deliberate  attempt  on  the  part  of 
the  Jesuits  to  clear  the  colony  of  the  numerous 
"  heretics "  v/itli  which  it  was  infested.  Their 
methods  of  accomplishing  this  were  various ; 
chiefly,  however,  they  sought  succees  by  vigorous 
efforts  of  proselytising,  by  rigidly  excluding  Angli- 

*  "  The  records  have  been  carefully  searched.  No  case  of 
persecution  occurred  during  the  administration  of  Governor 
Leonard  Calvert  from  the  foundation  of  the  settlement  of  St. 
Mary's  to  the  year  1647."  See  Davis,  The  Day  Star,  P.  38.  Is  not 
this  a  case  of  persecution,  and  a  very  bad  one  too.  ? 


212    "  WHILE  THE  GOVERNMENT  IS  CATHOEIQUE.'^ 

cans  from  political  office,  and  by  working  the 
legislature  in  their  own  interests.  It  is  evident 
that  they  had  begun  to  regard  Ivlaryland  as  their 
domain.  A  rude  aw^akening  was  in  store  for  them. 
The  Jesuit  priests  would  have  been  more  than 
mortal  if  they  could  have  refrained  from  proselyt- 
ising amongst  those  wdio  w^ere  spiritually  in  so 
forlorn  and  helpless  a  condition.  And  at  this  no 
just  cause  of  offence  can  be  taken.  Their  methods 
may  have  been  open  to  objection,  and  even  to 
serious  censure  ;  but  there  can  be  no  question  as  to 
its  being  the  duty  of  ever}^  priest,  and  even  of 
ever}^  layman,  to  use  all  law^ful  means  to  save  his 
neighbor's  imperiled  soul.  And  when  so  fair  an 
opportunit}'  of  doing  good  presented  itself  to  these 
Jesuit  priests,  as  was  nov/  offered  in  IMaryland, 
they  could  only  have  been  men  lacking,  in  all  vital 
belief  in  their  own  creed,  had  they  been  content  to 
settle  down  upon  their  lees  without  making  an 
effort  to  use  it.  To  win  the  Protestants  should  not 
have  been  difficult,  and  had  the  priests  only  been 
men  of  tact  and  good  judgment,  presenting  their 
views  with  calmness  and  moderation,  maintaining 
a  kindly  respect  for  Anglican  prejudices,  carefully 
abstaining  from  saying  or  doing  anything  likeh'  to 
wound  the  feelings  of  their  neighbors,  ready  at  any 


"while  the  government  is  cathouque."  213 

time  to  minister  in  the  spirit  of  meekness  to  the 
sick  and  suffering,  above  all  showing  forth  the 
beauty  of  the  religion  they  professed  by  holy  self- 
denying  lives,  they  might  have  won  all.  And  this 
at  first  seemed  to  have  been  their  plan  of  work. 
But  Copley  ruined  all.  He  could  not  wait.  He 
was  like  a  man  who  digs  up  the  seed  sown  to  sat- 
isfy himself  that  it  is  growing. 

No  censure,  therefore,  can  justly  be  passed  upon 
the  priests,  if  in  obedience  to  their  convictions  they 
compassed  sea  and  land  to  make  one  proselyte. 
Whether  their  efforts  were  always  well  advised 
in  this  respect,  there  will  be  no  need  for  me  to 
express  an  opinion  since  we  have  their  own  volun- 
tary statements  describing  the  methods  they  pur- 
sued. These  statements  are  to  be  found  in  their 
annual  letters  to  England,  the  first  of  which  is 
dated  in  the  year  1635.  In  that  letter  the  writer 
merely  informs  his  superior  that  there  are  "three 
priests  and  two  assistants  who  in  the  hope  of  future 
results  endure  their  present  toils  with  great  cheer- 
fulness." ^  Next  year's  letter  states  that  "four 
priests  are  at  work  in  the  Mission  with  one  lay 
assistant."  In  1638,  however,  we  first  come  across 
evidence  of  direct  and  systematic  proselytising  on 
^Letters,  Md.  His.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  7,  P.  54. 


214  "while  the  government  is  cathouque." 

the  part  of  the  missionaries.  "  Meanwhile,"  the 
letter  for  that  year  relates,  "  we  devote  ourselves 
more  zealously  to  the  English  ;  and  since  there  are 
Protestants  as  well  as  Catholics  in  the  Colony,  we 
labor  for  both,  and  God  has  blessed  our  labors. 
For  among  the  Protestants  nearly  all  who  have 
come  from  England,  in  this  year  1638,  and  many 
others,  have  been  converted  to  the  Faith,  together 
with  four  servants^  whom  we  purchased  in  Vir- 
ginia (another  Colony  of  our  kingdom)  for  neces- 
sary services,  and  five  mechanics,  whom  we  hired 
for  a  month  and  have,  in  the  meantime,  won  to 
God."  These  servants  in  reality  were  negro  slaves, 
of  whom  the  missionaries  had  several.  For  one  of 
them,  a  mulatto  named  Francisco  brought  in  by 
Father  White,  Copley  claimed  an  emigrant's  share 
of  land.  He  was  the  first  slave  in  the  colony  of 
which  there  is  any  notice.'  The  Jesuits  have 
therefore  the  honor  of  having  introduced  slaveiy 
into  Maryland.  It  has  been  attempted  to  pass  this 
distinction  on  to  the  Puritans,  but  justice  requires 
us   to   refuse   to  deprive  the  Jesuits  of   whatever 

•■'  Slaves  are  mentioned  in  the  records  of  this  same  year  being 
especially  exempted  from  the  operation  of  the  Act  for  the  Lib- 
erties of  the  People,  Archives  of  Maryland,  Assembly,  1637-S- 
1664.     P.  41. 

^  Neill,  Terra  Mariae,  P.  69. 


"while  the  government  is  catholique."  215 

praise  they  may  be  entitled  to  for  their  services  in 
this  matter. 

The  Roman  campaign  was  now  in  full  cry.  The 
colony  had  been  four  years  in  existence,  yet  the 
Jesuits  had  not  apparently  any  remarkable  returns 
to  show  as  the  result  of  their  efforts,  and  of  their 
unparalleled  opportunities.  The  evangelization  of 
the  heathen  Indians  had  not  gone  forward  as 
rapidly  as  they  had  expected  it  would  have  done  f 
while  they  had  had  comparatively  little  success 
among  their  white  neighbors.  In  fact,  beyond 
attending  to  the  spiritual  interests  of  their  own 
people,  they  had  scarcely  been  able  to  accomplish 
anything  at  all.  It  was  perhaps  due  to  this  failure 
that  they  had  entered  upon  a  more  active  propa- 
ganda which  could  not  fail  to  be  exasperating. 
One  account,  taken  from  the  same  letter  of  1638, 
exhibits  them  as  forcing  their  way  into  houses 
against  the  opposition  of  their  occupants  ;  and  hovv^- 
ever  creditable  to  their  perseverance  and  indomi- 
table energy  that  method  of  making  converts  was, 
it  did  not  reflect  favorably  upon  their  good  judg- 
ment, since  it  was  exceedingly  well  calculated  to 
defeat  its  own  objects.  Here  is  the  story  related 
by    the    writer    describing  the   occurrence   as    one 

'^Letters,  P.  55. 


2l6    ^' WHILE  THE  GOVERNMENT  IS  CATHOLIQUE." 

for  which  much  praise  is  due  : —  "  A  certain 
man,  entirely  unknown  to  us,  but  a  zealous 
disciple  of  the  Protestant  religion,  w^as  staying 
with  a  friend  who  was  still  more  zealous ;  and 
having  been  bitten  by  one  of  the  snakes  which 
abound  in  these  parts,  was  expecting  death.  One 
of  our  compan}^,  finding  this  out,  took  watli  him  a 
surgeon,  and  hurried  to  the  sick  man,  who,  it  was 
reported,  had  already  lost  his  senses,  with  the 
intention  of  ministering  to  his  soul  in  any  way  that 
he  could.  But  the  host,  divining  his  intention, 
tried  to  thwart  his  pious  efforts.  And  the  priest, 
as  he  could  find  no  other  opportunity,  determined 
to  stay  all  night  with  the  sick  man.  But  the  host 
prevented  this  too,  and,  lest  the  father  should  be 
admitted  at  night,  he  appointed  a  guard  to  sleep  on 
a  bed,  laid  across  the  door  of  the  chamber  occupied 
by  his  friend.  Nevertheless,  the  priest  kept  on  the 
watch  for  every  opportunity  of  approach  ;  and 
going  at  midnight,  when  he  supposed  the  guard 
would  be  especially  overcome  by  sleep,  contrived, 
without  disturbing  him,  to  pass  in  to  the  sick  man, 
and,  at  his  own  desire,  received  him  into  the 
Church."^ 

9  Ibid,  P.  57. 


"  WHII.E  THE  GOVERNMENT  IS  CATHOLIQUE."    217 

Again,  the  following  incident: — "  Another  man, 
when  one  of  us  tried  to  bring  him  to  the  orthodox 
faith,  repulsed  him  with  the  answer,  '  that  he 
had  vowed  he  would  never  embrace  that  faith.'  A 
short  time  afterwards,  this  wretched  man  was 
attacked  by  disease,  and  brought  to  the  last 
extremity,  before  the  father  was  advised  of  his 
sickness.  He,  however,  hastens  to  the  sick  man 
with  all  speed,  and  finds  him  insensible,  yet  still 
breathing.  .  .  .  The  father,  therefore,  determined 
to  make  use  of  the  present  opportunity,  inasmuch 
as  he  could  not  hope  for  another  one  afterwards. 
And  when  by  various  communications  he  had 
obtained  ( as  he  judged )  the  consent  of  the  sick 
man,  understanding  from  him  that  he  wished  to  be 
made  a  Catholic,  because  he  was  sorry  for  his  sins, 
and  anxious  to  be  absolved  from  them,  he  absolved 
him  from  his  sins  and  anointed  him  with  the 
sacred  oil.  After  this  had  been  done  the  sick  man, 
in  a  day  or  two,  was  perfectly  restored  to  his 
senses." 

Again :  "Another  man,  who  was  of  noble  birth, 
had  been  reduced  to  such  poverty,  by  his  own 
unrestrained  licentiousness,  that  he  sold  himself 
into  this  colony.  Here  he  had  been  recalled  by 
one  of  us  to  the  right  faith  and  the  fruit  of  good 


2i8  "while  the  government  is  cathouque." 

living.  This  man  being  brought  to  the  last 
extremity  by  a  severe  disease,  and  taking  all  the 
sacraments,  about  an  hour  before  his  death,  asked 
his  Catholic  attendant  to  pray  for  him.  It  is  prob- 
able that  an  evil  angel  presented  itself  to  his  sight  ; 
for  almost  at  the  very  point  of  death,  he  called  the 
same  attendant  and  said,  with  a  cheerful  voice : 
"  Don't  you  see  my  good  angel  ?  Behold  him 
standing  near  to  carry  me  away,  and  I  must 
depart ;  "  and  thus  happily,  (as  we  are  permitted  to 
hope)  he  breathed  his  last.  Since  his  burial  a 
very  bright  light  has  often  been  seen  at  night 
around  his  tomb,  even  by  Protestants." 

The  next  year's  report  ends  thus : — ''  To  the 
hope  of  the  Indian  harvest  are  to  be  added  also  no 
mean  fruits  to  be  reaped  in  the  colony  and  its 
inhabitants,  to  whom,  on  the  principal  festival 
days  of  the  year,  sermons  are  preached,  and  the 
catechetical  exposition  given  on  the  Lord's  day. 
Not  only  Catholics  come  in  crowds,  but  also  very 
many  heretics — not  without  the  reward  of  our 
labors ;  for  this  year,  twelve  in  all,  wearied  of 
former  errors,  have  returned  to  favor  with  God  and 
the  Church.  "  ^"  Apparently  the  missionaries  were 
beginning  to  feel  encouraged.     That  twelve  persons 

'0  Ibid,  P.  73. 


"  WHILE  THE  GOVERNMENT  LS  CATHOLIQUE."  219 

had  been  gathered  into  their  Church  does  not 
indeed  seem  a  great  retnrn,  bnt  they  were  thankful 
that  a  beginning  had  been  made.  Next  year  they 
deemed  that  they  had  even  greater  encouragement 
still.  In  the  language  of  the  report  "  everywhere 
the  hope  of  harvest  has  dawned."  ^^ 

But  the  missionaries  claimed  the  power  of  work- 
ing miracles.  Witness  the  following  very  remark- 
able account :  "It  has  also  pleased  the  divine 
goodness,"  runs  the  annual  letter,  "  by  the  virtue  of 
His  cross,  to  effect  something  beyond  mere  human 
power."  "The  circumstances  are  these  :  A  certain 
Indian,  called  Anacostan,  from  his  country,  but 
now  a  Christian,  whilst  he  was  making  his  way 
through  a  wood,  fell  behind  his  companions  a  little 
ahead,  when  some  savages  of  the  tribe  of  Susque- 
hannoes,  which  I  have  mentioned  before,  attacked 
him  suddenly  from  an  ambuscade,  and  with  a 
strong  and  light  spear  of  locust  v/ood  (from  which 
they  make  their  bows)  with  an  iron  point  oblong 
at  the  sides,  pierced  him  through  from  the  right 
side  to  the  left,  at  a  hand's  breadth  below  the  arm- 
pit, near  the  heart  itself,  with  a  wound  two  fingers 
broad  at  each  side.  From  the  effect  of  this,  when 
the  man  had  fallen,  his  enemies  fly  with  the  utmost 

"  Ibid,  P.  P.  77. 


220    "while  the  government  IS  CATHOUQUE." 

precipitation,  but  his  friends,  who  had  gone  on 
before,  recalled  by  the  sudden  noise  and  shout, 
return  and  carr>^  the  man  from  the  land  to  the  boat, 
which  was  not  very  far  distant,  and  thence  to  his 
home  at  Pascataway,  and  leave  him  speechless  and 
out  of  his  senses.  The  thing  being  reported  to 
Father  White,  who  by  chance  was  but  a  short  dis- 
tance off,  he  hastened  to  him  the  following  morn- 
ing, and  found  the  man  before  the  doors,  lying  on 
a  mat  before  the  fire,  and  enclosed  by  a  circle  of 
his  tribe — not  indeed  altogether  speechless,  or  out 
of  his  senses,  as  the  day  before,  but  expecting  the 
most  certain  death  almost  any  moment ;  and  with 
a  mournful  voice  joining  in  the  song  with  his 
friends  which  stood  around,  as  is  the  custom  in  the 
case  of  the  more  distinguished  of  these  men  when 
they  are  thought  to  be  certainly  about  to  die.  But 
some  of  the  friends  were  Christians,  and  their  song, 
which,  musically  indeed,  but  with  plaintive  inflec- 
tion of  tone  was,  '  May  he  live,  O,  God  !  if  it  so  please 
thee  ; "  and  they  repeated  it  again  and  again,  until 
the  father  attempted  to  address  the  dying  man,  who 
immediately  knew  the  father  and  showed  him  his 
wound.  The  father  pitied  him  exceedingly,  but 
when  he  saw  the  danger  to  be  most  imminent,  the 
other  things  being  omitted,  he  briefly  runs  over  the 


"  WHII.E  THE  GOVERNMENT  IS  CATHOUQUE."    221 

principal  articles  of  faith  ;  and  repentance  of  his 
sins  being-  excited,  he  received  his  confession ; 
then,  elevating  his  soul  with  hope  and  confidence 
in  God,  he  recited  the  Gospel  which  is  appointed 
to  be  read  for  the  sick,  as  also  the  Litany  of  the 
Blessed  Virgin,  and  told  him  to  commend  himself 
to  her  most  holy  intercessions,  and  to  call  unceas- 
ingly upon  the  most  sacred  name  of  Jesus.  Then 
the  Father,  applying  the  most  sacred  relics  of  tlie 
most  holy  cross,  which  he  carried  in  a  casket  hung 
to  his  neck,  but  had  now  taken  off,  to  the  wound 
on  each  side,  before  his  departure  directed  the 
bystanders,  when  he  should  breathe  his  last,  to 
carry  him  to  the  chapel  for  the  purpose  of  burial. 
It  was  now  noon  when  the  father  departed  ;  and 
the  following  day,  at  the  same  hour,  when  by 
chance  he  was  borne  along  in  his  boat,  he  saw  two 
Indians  propelling  a  boat  v/ith  oars  toward  him  ; 
and  v/hen  they  had  come  alongside,  one  of  them 
put  his  foot  into  the  boat,  in  which  the  father  was 
sitting.  Whilst  he  gazed  on  the  man  with  fixed 
eyes,  being  in  doubt,  for  in  a  measure  he  recog- 
nized him  by  his  features  who  he  was,  but  in  part 
recollecting  in  what  state  he  had  left  him  the  day 
before,  when  the  man,  on  a  sudden,  having  thrown 
open  his  cloak,  and  having  disclosed  the  cicatrices 


222    "while  the  GOVERNMENT  IS  CATHOIJOUE." 

of  the  wounds,  or  rather  a  red  spot  on  each  side,  as 
a  trace  of  the  wound,  immediately  removed  all 
doubts  from  him.  Moreover,  in  language  with 
great  exultation  he  exclaims,  '  that  he  is  entirely 
well,  nor  from  that  hour  at  which  the  father  had 
left  yesterday,  had  he  ceased  to  invoke  the  most 
holy  name  of  Jesus,  to  whom  he  attributed  his 
recovered  health.'  "  ^^ 

But  side  by  side  with  these  efforts,  not  always 
tactful,  to  persuade  men  to  accept  the  dogmas  of 
the  Roman  Church,  coupled  with  their  remarkable 
claims  to  the  possession  of  divine  power,  went  overt 
deeds  of  persecution  by  the  Jesuits.  As  early  as  1638 
there  w^as  an  instance  of  the  kind  in  St.  Mar^-'s. 
This  was  the  act  ^^  of  William  Lewis,  who  forbade 
two  of  his  servants  to  read  in  his  house  a  book  of 
sermons  written  by  an  English  clergyman. ^^  It 
was  a  particularly  bad  feature  of  the  case  that 
Lewis  was  Father  Copley's,  agent  and  we  may 
therefore  see  Copley's  hand  in  this  piece  of  intoler- 
ance. Lewis'  language  about  the  book  and  its 
author,  and  indeed  the  Anglican  clergy  generally, 
was  such  that  all  the  Churchmen  in  the  colony 
were  up  in  arms  about  it.     In  their  eyes  Lewis  was 

^''Ibid.Y.  87-88. 

"  Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  9,  Streeter,  P.  232. 

"Rev.  Henry  Smiih,  Sermons,  (published  in  1592.) 


"while  the  government  is  CATHOI.IQUE."    223 

a  traitor,  who  should  be  severely  dealt  with.  There 
v/as  even  some  talk  of  appealing  for  redress  to  the 
Governor  of  Virginia.  This,  however,  was  not 
necessary ;  a  crisis  had  arisen,  but  it  was  not  a 
greater  one  than  the  Government  of  Maryland  was 
able  to  settle.  It  was  just  an  unfortunate  dispute 
of  this  sort  which  Lord  Baltimore  had  feared  as 
dangerous  to  his  province,  and  Governor  Calvert 
knew  his  brother's  mind.  A  lenient  sentence  would 
have  been  mis-timed  clemency.  Accordingly  Lewis 
v/as  fined  five  hundred  pounds  of  tobacco,  and  was 
bound  over  to  good  behaviour,  giving  security 
therefor  in  three  thousand  pounds  sterling. 

It  was  not  until  1642  that  any  similar  act  of 
intolerance  is  met  with.  In  that  year,  Mr.  Thomas 
Gerard,  the  lord  of  St.  Clement's  Manor,  took  away 
the  keys  and  books  of  the  Church  at  St.  Mary's. ^^ 
Mr.  Gerard  was  heard  in  his  own  defence,  but  he 
also  was  mulcted  in  a  fine  of  five  hundred  pounds 
of  tobacco — the  same  to  be  paid  towards  the  sup- 
port of  the  first  minister  who  shoidd  arrive.  Again 
the  fine  was  out  of  proportion  to  the  offense  in 
ordinary  times,  but  in  the  Maryland  colony  the 
times  were  not  ordinary  by  any  means.      At  any 

^5  Md.  Toleration,  Allen,  P.  44  ;  also  Neill,  Founders  of  Mary- 
land, P.  100. 


224  "while  the  government  is  cathouque." 

moment  a  conflagration  might  occnr,  and  those 
who  nnder  such  circumstances  were  found  playing 
with  fire  deserved  punishment/^ 

^^  Commenting  on  these  cases  a  Roman  Catholic  author  sa5's  : 
'  Faithfully  did  Cecilius,  the  Proprietary,  execute  the  pledge  he 
had  given  to  the  members  of  the  English  Church,  How  intoxi- 
cating is  the  taste  of  power  !  How  apt  are  we  to  forget  the 
obligation  we  owe  to  those  whom  we  command  !  How  easy  was 
it  for  the  Proprietar}-,  in  an  obscure  and  remote  part  of  the 
world,  beyond  the  immediate  eye  of  the  Crown,  to  commit  acts 
of  petty  cruelty  and  oppression  towards  those  who  differed  with 
him  on  points  of  faith,  not  only  by  excluding  them  from  civil 
offices,  but  also  in  many  other  respects.  The  singular  fidelity 
with  which  the  second  Baron  of  Baltimore  kept  his  pledge, 
presents  one  of  the  best  examples  upon  record,  one  of  the  purest 
lessons  of  history,  one  of  the  strongest  claims  to  the  gratitude 
of  Maryland  and  to  the  admiration  of  the  world. ' '  Davis,  The 
Day  Star,  P.  34.  Indeed  !  With  Virginia,  watching  with  lynx- 
like eyes  the  course  of  the  Maryland  government,  ready  to  accuse 
it  of  the  least  unfaithfulness  to  its  Charter,  and  he  himself, 
detained  in  England  as  a  pledge  of  his  government's  good 
behaviour,  he  was  not  apt  to  become  intoxicated  with  the  taste 
of  power,  nor  to  be  foimd  starting  on  a  crusade  of  persecution. 
His  own  co-religionists  accused  Cecilius  Calvert  of  being  inimi- 
cal to  their  interests,  and  indifferent  to  the  claims  of  his  Church. 
But  no  one  ever  accused  him  of  lacking  a  proper  regard  for  his 
temporal  welfare. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 
WORKING  THE  LEGISLATURE. 

Keep  leets  and  law  days. 

—Shakespeare. 

The  first  Legislative  Assembly  ever  held  in 
Maryland,  of  which  we  have  any  record,  began  its 
sessions  at  St.  Mary's  on  the  25th  of  January,  1637, 
under  the  presidency  of  Leonard  Calvert.  All  the 
freemen  of  the  province  had  been  summoned  to 
appear,  and  a  complete  list  is  extant  of  those  wdio 
were  present  and  of  those  who  were  absent.  Ab- 
sentees, represented  by  proxy,  were  excused  ;  the 
others,  with  three  notable  exceptions,  were  amerced 
for  non-appearance.  These  exceptions  were  the 
three  Jesuit  priests,  "  Mr.  Thomas  Copley,  Esq., 
Mr.  Andrew  White,  Gent.,  Mr.  John  Altham, 
Gent,"  ^  all  residents  in  St.  Mary's  hundred.  Like 
the  laymen,  they  had  been  summoned  to  take  their 
places  as  legislators.  On  the  assembling  of  the 
House,  however,  Robert  Clarke,  described  as  'gent' 

'^Archives  of  Maryland,  Assembly,  Page  63. 


226  WORKING   THE    LEGISLATURE. 

on  the  records,  but  who  was  in  reality  servant  to 
Mr.  Copley,  appeared  for  them  and  excused  their 
absence  by  reason  of  sickness.  That  all  the  rev- 
erend gentlemen  were  laid  low  at  one  time  could 
not  fail  to  be  a  subject  of  much  comment.  Proba- 
bly the  circumstance  occasioned  many  surmises  as 
to  the  character  of  the  epidemic  which  had  thus 
incapacitated  the  clerical  gentlemen.  Eventually 
however  they  were  permanently  exempted  from 
attendance,  it  being  found  that  it  was  not  sickness, 
but  an  unwillingness  to  fill  the  part  assigned  them, 
which  v/as  the  cause  of  their  absence. 

The  objection  of  the  priests  to  appear  as  legisla- 
tors was  due  no  doubt  to  the  assumption  involved 
in  the  summons  that  they  were  laymen.  For  it 
will  be  observed  that  it  was  as  such  that  the}'  were 
summoned ;  their  clerical  status  being  ignored. 
Their  attitude  on  this  occasion  was  probably  sug- 
gested by  the  fact  that  the  clergy  of  the  English 
Church  are  forbidden  to  sit  in  the  House  of  Commons. 
Mindful,  therefore,  of  this  the  Jesuits  refused  to 
appear  in  the  legislative  assembly  of  IMaryland. 
Were  they  not  clergymen  too  ?  Why  this  invidious 
distinction  ?  What  justification  was  there  now  for 
it  ?  It  v/as  bad  enough  to  have  to  submit  to  such 
discrimination  in  England.     But  they  would  have 


WORKING   THE   LEGISLATURE.  22  7 

none  of  it  in  Maryland.  They  would  not  come. 
They  would  compel  the  House  to  recognize  their 
priestly  status,  and  in  this  they  succeeded. 

Nov/  for  a  mere  sentimental  objection  of  this 
kind  we  may  be  inclined  to  marvel  that  the  Jesuits 
should  have  been  willing  to  forego  such  an  oppor- 
tunity as  membership  in  the  House  afforded  them 
of  personally  influencing  legislation  in  their  favor. 
And  we  shall  be  inclined  to  do  this  the  more  when 
we  remember  on  what  ground  it  was  that  the 
English  clergy  were  excluded  from  the  Lower  House 
of  Parliament.  For  it  was  not  as  clergymen  that 
they  w^ere  excluded,  but  as  members  of  a  class  or 
order  already  represented  by  their  bishops  in  the 
Upper  House.  Regarding  them  as  quite  sufficiently 
represented  in  Parliament  already,  and  considering 
furthermore  that  they  possessed  an  exceptionally 
influential  position  in  the  country  generally  by 
virtue  of  their  official  status,  the  law  refused  them 
any  additional  representation.  Still,  the  reasons 
for  this  action  were  not  always  remembered,  and 
the  public  had  become  familiar  v/ith  the  idea  that 
it  was  by  virtue  of  their  priestly  office  that  the 
clergy  were  ineligible  for  election  to  Parliament. 
Hence  the  law  forbidding  them  to  sit  in  the  House 
of  Commons  had  come  to  be  regarded  as  equivalent 


228  WORKING    THE    LEGISLATURE. 

to  a  recognition  on  the  part  of  the  government  of 
their  clerical  office,  as  in  fact,  a  sort  of  hall-mark 
stamped  upon  their  spiritual  claims.  And  this 
impression  was  deepened  and  confirmed  b}-  the 
different  treatment  accorded  to  the  various  non- 
conformist sects,  not  excluding  the  Roman.  Unlike 
the  Church  clergy  the  various  ministers  of  these 
dissenting  bodies  might  be  legally  elected  as  mem- 
bers of  the  House  of  Commons,  and  there  sit  with- 
out a  penalty.  The  refusal  of  the  Jesuits  in 
Maryland  appears  to  show  that  they  also  were  under 
the  popular  delusion  as  to  the  origin  of  the 
restriction. 

The  suggestion,^  gravely  made,  that  this  refusal 
of  the  Jesuits  to  sit  in  the  first  Maryland 
Assembly  was  due  to  a  commendable  unwilling- 
ness to  become  involved  in  disputes  attending  the 
transaction  of  merely  mundane  affairs  is  provoca- 
tive of  a  smile.  When  was  a  Jesuit  known  to  be 
averse  to  the  fascinations  of  wire  pulling  and  to  the 
profits  of  successful  politics?  Indeed,  so  far  were 
the  Jesuits  from  refusing  to  have  anything  to  do 
with  legislative  affairs,  that  Mr.  Copley  boasted 
that  his  overseer,  Mr.  Lewis,  had  more  proxies  in 

2  De  Convey,  Pp.  28,  29. 


WORKING   THE    LEGISLATURE.  229 

the  House  than  anyone  else,  he  having  not  less 
than  seven — and  this  in  a  House  of  only  seventy 
members !  ^ 

This  will  be  a  convenient  place  to  explain  the 
organization  of  the  early  legislative  Assemblies  of 
Maryland  ;  for  unless  we  have  some  general  idea 
of  their  constitution,  much  that  would  otherwise 
be  quite  simple  and  intelligible,  will  be  impossi- 
ble to  understand.  Every  freeman  in  Maryland, 
was  regarded  as  a  member  ex-officio — freemen 
being  such  citizens  as  were  over  twenty-one  years 
of  age,  and  not  held  by  indenture  or  otherwise  in 
personal  service.  After  a  time,  as  the  colonists 
increased  in  numbers,  the  principle  of  representa^ 
tion  had  to  be  resorted  to,  but  at  first  each  freeman 
possessed  the  right  of  speaking  and  voting,  either 
in  person  or  by  proxy,  upon  the  laws  by  which  he 
was  to  be  governed.  Slaves  and  indentured  ser- 
vants,"* so  long  as  they  remained  in  service,  were 

^  Calvert  Papers  No.  i,  Md.  Hist.  Soc.,  Page  158. 

*  These  indentured  servants  were  practically  slaves,  for  the 
indenture  that  bound  them  to  their  master  during  the  period  of 
servitude  gave  the  master  complete  control  over  them  with  the 
right  to  punish  them  severely  for  any  offense,  or  to  hunt  them 
down  should  they  attempt  to  escape  from  bondage.  An 
announcement  like  that  which  follows,  which  appeared  in  the 
Pennsylvania  Gazette  as  late  as  July  28,  1784,  was  at  one  time 
ver}'   common: —  "Just  arrived   from   Londonderiy,    on   brig 


230  WORKING   THE    LEGISLATURE. 

naturally  denied  this  privilege.  The  restriction 
was  a  reasonable  one,  although  for  a  few  years  it 
operated  prejudicially  against  the  Anglican  Church- 
men. These,  as  we  have  seen,  numerically 
considered,  were  greatly  in  the  majority  through- 
out the  province,  but  politically  they  were  weak, 
a  very  large  number  of  them  being  of  the  unfran- 
chised, indentured  class.  It  is  true  that  among  the 
"gentlemen"  who  came  in  the  Ark  there  were 
some  good,  staunch  Churchmen,  but  of  this  class 
the  Roman  Catholics  for  a  short  while  had  the 
majority,  and  hence,  also,  political  power.  Accord- 
ingly, when  the  first  Assembly  was  gathered 
together  on  a  basis  of  freeman  suffrage,  although 
Churchmen  on  actual  ballot  were  in  an  overwhelm- 
ing majority,  the  Romanists  were  in  a  position  to 
materially  influence  proceedings  in  their  favor. 
"The  Government"  was  "Catholique."  Thus  the 
first  Maryland  Assembly  presented  the  singular 
spectacle  of  a  considerable  community  of  English- 
men subject  to  Roman  Catholic  influence  at  a 
time  when  the  celebration  of  the  Mass  was  a  capi- 

Peggy,  Captain  Stewart,  a  number  of  fine  healthy  men  and 
women  servants  and  some  small  boys,  whose  times  are  to  be 
disposed  of  to  the  best  bidders  by  the  Captain  on  board,  or  by 
Campbell  and  Kingston  on  the  wharf."  These  '  servants  '  were 
whites. 


WORKING   THE    LEGISLATURE.  231 

tal  felony  in  England.  For  the  first  time  since 
Mary's  reign,  English  supporters  of  the  papacy 
found  themselves  able  to  dominate  a  legislative 
assembly  in  their  own  interests.  And  they  were 
not  slow  in  taking  advantage  of  the  situation. 

With  these  facts  in  mind  let  us  try  to  see  what 
the  first  Assembly  of  Maryland  attempted  to  do. 
After  the  necessary  preliminaries  had  been  settled, 
a  draft  of  certain  laws  transmitted  to  them  for  their 
assent  by  the  lord  proprietary  was  debated  and 
rejected.  At  once  the  question  necessarily  arose : 
What  laws  was  the  colony  under  ?  This  being  not 
quite  clear  it  was  suggested  that  the  House  would 
do  well  to  agree  upon  some  laws  till  they  could 
hear  from  England.  Whereupon  the  governor 
denied  that  such  power  existed  in  the  House.  A 
dead-lock  seemed  imminent,  but  Captain  Corn- 
waleys  helped  the  House  out  of  its  difficulty,  by 
reminding  its  members  that  they  were  under  the 
laws  of  England.  Admitting  this  generally,  the 
governor  thought  there  were  circumstances  under 
which  these  laws  could  not  be  operative.  What, 
for  example,  he  asked,  would  be  done  with  enor- 
mous offenders,  there  being  no  power  to  punish 
offences  against  loss  of  life  or  member  ?     To  this 


232  WORKING   THE    LEGISLATURE. 

tlie  Captain  replied  that  such  offences  could  scarcely 
be  committed  without  mutiny,  and  in  that  case 
the}^  could  be  dealt  with  by  martial  law.''  The 
Hoiise  then  settled  down  to  business  and,  the  gov- 
ernor's objections  being  disposed  of,  the  assembly 
next  proceeded  to  take  the  initiative  itself.  Four- 
teen bills  were  then  read  for  the  first  time.  Other 
bills  soon  followed,  among  them  an  "  Act  for  the 
Liberties  of  the  People."  Unfortunately  while  we 
have  a  list  of  the  titles  of  the  various  acts  passed 
by  this  assembly,  together  with  a  list  of  those 
which  were  rejected,  we  have  not  the  text  of  the 
acts  themselves.  This  is  the  more  to  be  regretted, 
inasmuch  as  there  is  reason  to  believe  that  one  of 
the  acts  which  passed  the  Assembly  was  afterwards 
bitterly  opposed  by  the  Protestants.  At  any  rate  a 
letter  of  complaint  from  Captain  Cornwaleys  was 
sent  to  the  lord  proprietary  predicting  that  the 
action  of  the  House  would  bring  disaster  upon  the 
whole  province.*^     To  judge  by  the  tone  of  the  let- 

^  Archives  of  Maryland,  Assembly,  Page  17. 

^  Calvert  Papci^s  No.  /,  Pages  169-181, 

The  letter  was  dated  6th  of  April  and  really  seems  at  first 
sight  to  have  been  written  not  merely  after  the  first  but  also 
after  the  second  Assembly  held  March,  1638.  This  change  of 
dates,  caused  by  the  change  from  the  Old  to  the  New  Style  of 
reckoning,  is  often  very  confusing.  Let  me  make  the  matter 
clear  at  once,  so  far  as  the  dates  of  the  letter  and  the  assemblies 


WORKING   THE    LEGISI.ATURE.  233 

ter,  the  objectionable  measure  could  only  have  been 
one  which  closely  touched,  even  if  it  did  not  seri- 
ously jeopardize,  their  rights  as  English  Church- 
men. 

We  are  not  left,  however,  entirely  without  any 
clue  to  the  character  of  the  legislation  -which  only 
awaited  the  signature  of  the  proprietary  to  make  it 
the  law  of  the  colony.  In  the  Assembly  of  1638 
there  was  an  act  passed  which  plainly  touched  the 
rights  of  that  branch  of  Christ's  Holy  Catholic 
Church  of  which  the  writer  was  a  most  loyal  mem- 
ber. This  was  the  "  Act  for  Church  Liberties," 
and  a  more  lawless  proceeding  carried  out  under 
the  forms  of  law,  than  this  particular  measure  it 
would  be  difficult  to  find.  In  direct  violation  of 
English  statutes,  its  immediate,  but  hidden  eft'ect 
was   to  place  the  clergy  of    the    Roman  Church 

are  concerned.  The  Assembly  of  1637  met  in  Januar}'  :  by 
modern  reckoning  this  would  be  January  1638.  The  Assembly  of 
1638  met  in  February  and  March,  closing  March  24th,  the  last 
day  of  the  year  O.  S.  This  in  our  m.odern  chronology  would  be 
1638  also,  for  the  new  year  began  March  25th.  Now  Corn- 
waleys'  letter  criticising  the  doings  of  the  Assembly  was  dated 
April  6th,  1638,  a  date  untouched  by  our  modern  style  of 
reckoning.  Consequently  it  will  be  seen  that  his  letter  was 
written  after  the  holding  of  the  first,  and  before  the  holding  of 
the  second  Assembly. 

For  a   fuller   explanation   of  the  change  from  Old  to  New- 
Style,  see  Bozman,  Vol.  I,  Page  347,  appendix  A. 


234  WORKING   THE    LEGISLATURE. 

beyond  control  of  the  civil  power,  exempting  them 
from  taxation  and  many  of  the  duties  of  citizen- 
ship, and  enabling  their  Church,  among  other 
things,  to  hold  property  independent  of  the  state, 
which  by  the  statute  of  mortmain  even  the  English 
Church  herself  could  not  do.  "  Be  it  enacted,"  ran 
this  remarkable  act,  "by  the  Lord  Proprietary  of  the 
Province,  by  and  with  the  advice  and  approbation 
of  the  free  men  of  the  same,  that  Holy  Church, 
wdthin  this  Province,  shall  have  all  her  rights, 
liberties  and  immunities  safe,  whole  and  inviolable, 
in  all  things."  ^  Its  very  vagueness  rendered  it 
additionally  dangerous,  for  what  were  these  rights 
and  liberties  which  the  state  could  not  touch  ?  ^ 
As  commonly  understood  they  w^ere  the  rights 
of  the  Church  to  hold  property  free  from  taxation, 
and  to  have  the  clergy  exempt  from  civil  authority. 
Considering  that  even  in  England  the  clerg}'  had 
no  such  privileges  as  were  here  conferred  upon  the 
Roman  clergy  in  Mar>dand,  it  was  hardly  a  wise 
proceeding  to  force  through  the  infant  legislature 

"^Archives  of  Maryland,  Assembly,  Vol.  I,  Page  40. 

8 Bancroft,  Vol.  I,  Page  251,  says  :  "Those  rights  and  lib- 
erties, it  is  plain  from  the  Charter,  could  be  no  more  than  the 
tranquil  exercise  of  the  Roman  worship."  Father  Copley  soon 
made  it  clear  that  he  had  more  in  view.  See  Calvert  Papers, 
No.  I,  Page  157  and  following. 


WORKING   THE    I.EGISI.ATURE.  235 

of  the  province  such  a  radical  measure  as  this. 
Time  had  been  when  the  English  Church  possessed 
all  these  so-called  rights,  liberties  and  immunities  ; 
but  after  centuries  of  strife  and  contention  she  had 
been  gradually  dispossessed  of  them,  until  now  her 
clergy  v/ere  as  amenable  to  law  as  the  long  suffering 
laity  themselves,  and  England  was  free  from  a  body 
of  grasping  ecclesiastics,  by  a  strange  misconception 
regarded  as  the  Church — as  if  the  Church  were  the 
clergy  only — fattening  on  the  good  of  the  land 
while  repudiating  the  authority  of  the  very  laws 
which  made  their  possessions  secure  to  them. 

Some  such  act  as  this  it  was  which  no  doubt 
caused  Thomas  Cornwalevs  to  write  as  he  did. 
It  may  have  been  that  the  legislation  complained 
of  fonned  a  part  of  the  "  Act  for  the  liberties  of  the 
people."  Or  it  may  even  have  been  that  the  legis- 
lation was  as  yet  only  proposed,  and  that  the  Protes- 
tants seeing  its  nature,  protested  so  strongly  against 
it  that  it  never  was  enacted.  At  any  rate,  whatever 
it  was,  the  ire  of  the  chief  Protestant  of  the  colony 
was  profoundly  stirred  by  it,  and  hence  the  letter 
in  question. 

Assuming  that  the  protest  was  directed  against 
the  "  Act  for  Church  Liberties,"  or  one  like  it, 
we   cannot   wonder   at   its   fiery   character.      The 


236  WORKING   THE    LEGISLATURE. 

burnt  child  dreads  the  fire :  England  had  had 
enough  of  Rome.  We  have  indeed  been  assured 
that  that  Act  could  not  have  contemplated  the 
establishment  of  the  Roman  Church,  inasmuch 
as  the  declaration  of  its  first  section,  "  Holy 
Church  within  this  Province  shall  have  all  her 
rights  and  liberties,"  is  but  a  re-iteration  of  the 
first  clauses  of  Magna  Charta  which  declares  "  that 
the  Church  of  England  shall  have  all  her  rights 
aud  liberties  inviolate."  '*  It  was  nothing  of  the 
sort.     The  Roman  Catholics  had  not  the  slightest 

^ Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  iS,  Johnon,  Page  51.  See 
also  Day  Star,  notes,  page  30. 

It  is  commonly  forgotten  that  this  was  in  its  origin  a  dis- 
tinctly anti-papal  document,  its  very  first  clause  asserting  the 
freedom  of  the  English  Church  from  the  dominion  of  the  Papal, 
A  very  remarkable  proof  of  this  forgetfuhiess  was  afforded  in  a 
sermon  preached  by  Cardinal  Gibbons,  on  the  22nd  March,  1885. 
Preaching  on  civil  and  religious  liberty,  the  scholarh'^  and  lib- 
eral Cardinal  claimed  that  the  (Roman)  CathoHcs  had  always 
defended  aiid  upheld  the  religions  and  civil  rights  of  the  peo- 
ple. This  was  to  many  quite  a  new  idea,  but  the  preacher  was 
prepared  to  prove  his  statement,  and  he  proceeded  to  instance 
the  giving  of  Magna  Charta.  "The  measure,"  he  said,  "which 
is  probably  the  measure  of  greatest  benefit  to  the  civil  rights  of 
mankind  in  modern  times,  is  the  Magna  Charta  of  England.  It 
is  the  foundation  not  only  of  English  but  also  of  American  Con- 
stitutional liberty.  Who  were  its  authors?  The  (Roman) 
Catholic  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  and  the  (Roman)  Catholic 
Barons  of  England."  Thus  the  Cardinal;  but  Pope  Innocent 
III  ,  the  head  of  the  Roman  Church,  and  speaking  as  such, 
actually  declared  the  Charter  null  and  void,  ex-communicated 
the  barons  for  their  share  in  passing  it,  and  further  more  pro- 


WORKING   THE    LEGISLATURE.  237 

intention  of  doing  so  foolish  a  thing  as  re-iterating 
the  statement  that  the  English  Church  should  be 
free  from  papal  interference.  What  they  really  did 
was  this :  Having  deliberately  substituted  the 
the  term  'Holy  Church'  for  'Anglicana  Ecclesia' 
they  declared,  not  that  the  Christian  Church  in 
Maryland  should  be  free  from  unlawful  interfer- 
ence, on  the  part  of  the  temporal  power,  but  that 
the  Roman  Church  should  be  free  from  all  inter- 
ference of  any  kind  whatever,  whether  previously 
lawful  or  not.  Of  this  there  can  be  no  reasonable 
doubt.  It  must  be  admitted,  says  Burnap,  that 
they  established  the  (Roman)  Catholic  Church  as 
the  religion  of  the  state.  ^"^  Burnap  even  goes  fur- 
ther, and  says  that  "  it  was  the  intention  of  this  Act 
to  put  the  Catholic  religion  in  the  same  position 
with  regard  to  the  government  in  Maryland,  as  it 
had  occupied  with  regard  to  the  government  of 
England  before  the  Reformation."  Burnap  is  here 
laboring  under  the  common,  but  happily  disappear- 

ceeded  to  excommunicate  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  him- 
self unless  he  would  consent  to  undo  his  own  work,  and  put 
the  ban  of  the  Church  upon  the  noble  barons  who  had  supported 
him. 

See  also  the  Cardinal's  book,  The  Faith  of  our  Fathers,  P. 
229  for  the  same  erroneous  views. 

^0  Burnap 's  Calvert,  Page  171. 


238  WORKING   THE    LEGISLATURE. 

ing  delusion,  that  it  was  not  the  old  English  Church, 
but  the  Roman,  which  existed  in  England  before 
the  Reformation.  The  word  'Reformation'  might 
have  helped  him  to  a  better  understanding.  But, 
passing  this  error  by,  he  is  a  good  witness  as  to 
what  the  Jesuits  meant  to  do,  and  what  they  actu- 
ally did. 

We  may  rest  assured  that  the  Roman  Catholic 
legislators  deliberately  adopted  the  somewhat  indef- 
inite term  '  Holy  Church  '  as  the  one  which  would 
best  suit  their  purposes.  For  to  them  there  is  but 
one  Holy  Church,  and  they  would  certainly  never 
have  admitted  that  what  they  affect  to  regard  as 
Henry  the  Eighth's  Parliamentary  Church  was  part 
of  it.  The  term  was  therefore  by  no  means  indefi- 
nite to  them.  In  their  minds  Holy  Church  and 
Roman  Church  were  interchangeable  terms.  But 
it  would  never  have  done  to  use  the  term  '  Roman 
Church.'  Hence  they  fell  back  upon  this  indefi- 
nite term  as  being  all  they  required.  Their 
worldly  wisdom  in  this  respect  was  abundantly  jus- 
tified later  on,  when  the  Rev.  Francis  Fitzherbert, 
a  Jesuit  priest  on  trial  for  breaking  the  law, 
defended  his  course  saying,  that  by  "the  true  intent 
of  the  'Act  concerning  Religion'  every  Church  pro- 


WORKING   THE    LEGISLATURE.  239 

fessing  belief  in  God  the  Father,  Son  and  Holy 
Ghost,  is  accounted  Holy  Church  here."  " 

But  the  "Act  for  Church  Liberties"  was  hope- 
lessly at  variance  not  only  with  the  Magna  Charter  of 
England  but  even  with  the  Maryland  Charter, 
since  it  was  a  direct  repudiation  of  the  clause  of 
that  charter  which  required  that  nothing  should 
be  done  contrary  to  God's  Holy  and  True  religion — 
a  phrase  which  in  the  mouth  of  King  Charles  who 
gave  it  meant  the  Church  of  England  and  no  other. 
Yet  even  if  the  king  had  not  meant  this,  or  had 
been  remiss  in  his  duty  towards  the  Church,  at  the 
head  of  the  committee  which  passed  its  judgment 
upon  all  such  grants,  stood  the  Lord  Archbishop 
of  Canterbury,  none  other  at  that  time  than 
William  Laud,  in  whose  hands  the  interests  of  the 
Church  were  well  guarded.  Happily,  however,  the 
good  offices  of  the  Archbishop  were  not  required. 

We  have  no  certain  means  of  knowing  how  the 
Churchmen  of  Maryland  came  to  vote  for  so  dan- 
gerous a  measure  as  the  "  Act  for  Church  Liber- 
ties." Probably  at  first  they  did  not  suspect  the 
true  character  of  the  innocent  looking  act,  which 
was  only  intended  to  give  the  foreign  Church  her 
"rights  and  liberties."     Surely  only  a  bigot  would 

"  Davis,  Day  Star,  Pages  55-60,  notes. 


240  WORKING   THE    LEGISLATURE. 

object  to  that,  and  in  Maryland,  Churchmen  have 
always  been  singularly  free  from  bigotr>\  But 
they  soon  saw  that  they  had  committed  a  mistake, 
a  piece  of  culpable  folly,  which  could  bring  noth- 
ing but  ruin  and  disaster.  The  Protestants  had 
voted  for  the  establishment  of  Rome  :  their  act  was 
suicide.  As  such  it  was  the  beginning  of  the  end 
— an  intimation  to  them  to  put  their  houses  in 
order  and  abandon  the  colony.  Naturally  their 
eyes  were  soon  found  turning  longingly  to  the 
neighboring  colony  of  Virginia.  Of  course  it  may 
have  been  that  the  Protestants,  in  voting  for  the 
Act,  supposed  it  was  their  own  Church  for  which 
they  were  legislating.  In  this  case,  bitter  but  un- 
availing like  that  of  Esau,  must  their  repentance 
have  been.  They  had  sold  their  birthright,  nay, 
they  had  given  it  away.^- 

It  will  here  help  us  to  understand  better  the 
exact  position  of  the  two  parties  into  which  the 
colonists  were  now  divided  if  we  recall  the  state  of 
things  which  existed  in  England  a  few  years  after- 

^2  Eventually  the  Protestants  got  over  their  fears  and  per- 
mitted the  Act  to  pass  in  a  modified  form.  See  Archives  of 
Maryland,  Assembly,  P.  83.  A  subsequent  Assembly  in  1640 
re-approved  the  Act  in  a  somewhat  fuller  manner.  Probably 
by  this  time  the  government  being  no  longer  Roman  Catholic 
all  fear  of  Rome  had  fled,  and  these  English  Churchmen  were 
now  establishing  their  own  Church. 


WORKING   THE    LEGISLATURE.  241 

wards  when  James  II  was  king.  James  was  a 
Roman  Catholic  whose  courtiers  endeavored  to 
persuade  him  that  his  mission  in  life  was  to  over- 
throw the  ancient  National  Church  and  to  sub- 
stitute for  it  the  Church  of  Rome.  King  James, 
with  his  feeble  intellect,  was  to  succeed,  where 
Philip  of  Spain,  Queen  Mary  and  Cardinal  Pole, 
all  united,  had  ignominously  failed !  He  over- 
throw the  Church  of  England  ?  He  might  as  well 
have  attempted  to  roll  back  the  tides  of  the  ocean, 
or  alter  the  courses  of  the  stars.  He,  the  saviour 
of  the  Church  ?  A  second  Edward  the  Confessor  ? 
Well,  in  another  it  was  a  splendid  ambition,  not 
unworthy  even  of  a  great  man.  But  for  him  it  was 
folly.  Yet  vainly  confident  of  success,  he  entered 
upon  the  struggle  which  was  to  terminate  in  the 
undoing  of  himself  and  his  house  ;  seeing  not,  at 
any  rate  heeding  not,  his  people's  growing  exasper- 
ation at  every  new  act  of  injustice  against  the 
Church  of  England  which  was  rapidly  bringing  the 
end  nearer.  At  last  the  storm  broke,  and  it  swept 
him  from  his  throne.  Without  a  blow  the  Protes- 
tant William  of  Orange  became  king  in  his 
stead,  while  all  that  remained  of  the  mighty  James' 
brilliant  effort  on  behalf  of  the  Italian  Church  was 


242  WORKING   THE    I.EGISLATURK. 

summed  up  in  Article  IX  of  the  Bill  of  Rights  of 
1689. — "  It  hath  been  found  by  experience  that  it  is 
inconsistent  with  the  safety  and  welfare  of  this 
Protestant  Kingdom  to  be  governed  by  a  Popish 
Prince,  or  by  any  King  or  Queen  marrying  a 
Papist."  A  more  complete  and  crushing  defeat  it 
would  be  difficult  to  find.  It  fulfils  our  Lord's 
warning :  "  Whomsoever  shall  fall  on  this  stone 
shall  be  broken  ;  but  on  whomsoever  it  shall  fall  it 
will  grind  him  to  powder." 

The  Maryland  case  was  not  as  tragic  as  the 
English  in  its  final  issue.  But  in  its  earlier  stages, 
and  even  in  its  later  developments,  it  bore  quite  a 
strong  resemblance  to  it.  In  Mar}dand  there  was  a 
Roman  Catholic  head  of  the  government,  who,  like 
James,  was  subjected  to  Jesuit  influence,  which  was 
being  used  to  forward  precisely  the  same  ends.  So, 
too,  its  immediate  result  was  the  same,  for  it 
caused  such  dissatisfaction  among  the  Anglican 
members,  that  when  in  1643  ^^^^  authority  of  the 
King  of  England  was  superseded,  and  the  govern- 
ment changed,  almost  as  a  matter  of  course  an 
insurrection  immediately  followed  in  IMaryland, 
when  the  Roman  priests  were  expelled,  and  Lord 
Baltimore's  authority  repudiated. 


WORKING   THE   LEGISLATURE.  243 

Fortunately  for  the  Lord  Proprietary  of  Mary- 
land he  was  able  truthfully  to  say  what  the  English 
king  could  not  say,  that  he  was  in  no  way  con- 
cerned with  the  doings  of  his  co-religionists.  They 
only  were  to  be  blamed. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE  APPEAL  TO  THE  EORD 

PROPRIETARY. 

1638. 

Poise  the  cause  in  justice  equal  scales, 
Whose  beam  stands  sure,  whose  rightful  cause  prevails. 

— Shakespeare. 

The  letter  of  Captain  Cornwaleys  ^  shows  how 
bitter  was  the  feeling  against  the  measures  which 
had  been  agitated  in  the  colony.  Beginning  with 
a  reference  to  the  damages  he  had  personally  sus- 
tained from  William  Clayborne,  Cornwaleys 
informs  Lord  Baltimore  that  an  Act  for  Clayborne's 
attainture  was  on  its  way  for  his  confirmation. 
That  Act,  however,  was  but  one  among  others  "  of 
which  if  there  were  none  more  unjust,  he  would  be 
as  confident  to  see  Maryland  a  happy  common- 
wealth as  he  was  then  of  the  contrary,  if  his 
lordship  should  not  be  more  war^^  in  confirming 
than  they  had  been  in  proposing."  Earnestly 
therefore  does  he  beg  Lord  Baltimore  not  to 
^  Calvert  Papers,  Vol.  /,  P.  169. 


THE  APPEAI.  TO  THE  LORD  PROPRIETARY.    245 

sanction  the  least  clause  of  the  proposed  legislation 
until  "it  had  been  thoroughly  scanned  and  resolved 
by  wise,  learned  and  religious  divines,  to  be  nowise 
prejudicial  to  the  immunities  and  privileges  of 
that  Church  which  is  the  only  guide  to  all  eternal 
happiness,  and  of  which  they  would  show  them- 
selves the  most  ungrateful  members  that  ever  she 
nourished  if  they  attempted  to  deprive  her  of 
them."  What  those  grievances  were,  and  how 
they  were  to  be  remedied,  the  lord  proprietary  can 
ascertain  from  those  who  are  far  more  knowing  in 
the  rights  of  the  Church  than  he  is.  His  duty  is 
done  when  he  has  importuned  his  "  lordship,  who 
alone  now  can  mend  what  has  been  done  amiss,  to 
be  careful  to  preserve  the  honor  of  God  Almighty, 
who  only  can  preserve  both  him  and  Maryland." 
This  done,  in  the  spirit  of  David,  when  he  said,  "  I 
have  been  young  and  now  I  am  old,  and  yet  saw  I 
never  the  righteous  forsaken,  nor  his  seed  begging 
their  bread,"  he  tells  Lord  Baltimore  that  "  he 
never  yet  heard  of  anyone  who  suffered  loss  by 
being  bountiful  to  God  or  His  church,  and  he 
would  not  have  him  fear  to  be  the  first.  He 
acknowledges  that  these  are  matters  not  properly 
falling  within  his  cognizance,  but  he  cannot 
willingly  consent  to  anything  that  may  not  stand 


246   THE  APPEAL  TO  THE  LORD  PROPRIETARY. 

with  the  conscience  of  a  '  real  Catholic' ^  In  the 
event  of  this  protest  meeting  with  no  success  he 
will  withdraw  himself,  and  what  is  left  of  his 
property  beyond  the  reach  of  approaching  evils. 
Not  that  the  alarming  outlook  was  a  condition  of 
affairs  entirely  unforeseen  by  him,  as  his  lordship 
might  remember,  for  the  first  requisite  that  he  had 
insisted  upon  being  guaranteed  to  him  ere  he  was 
willing  to  sail  to  Maryland,  was  his  liberty 
of  conscience,  notwithstanding  that  his  lordship 
had  laughed  at  his  fears  as  utterly  groundless  and 
chimerical.  Plainly  Cornwaleys  is  of  the  opinion 
that  the  promises  m.ade  had  not  been  kept,  his 
religious  rights  being  now  seriously  threatened  by 
the  proposed  legislation.  Other  troubles  he  has, 
which  affect  him  greatly.  Trade  conditions  are 
not  satisfactory,  and  the  lord  proprietar}^'s  promises 

•^  Our  Roman  Catholic  brethren  are  so  accustomed  to  claim 
the  exclusive  use  of  the  word  Catholic  as  descriptive  of  them- 
selves, that  it  is  as  well  to  draw  special  attention  to  this  descrip- 
tion of  himsolf  given  by  the  foremost  Churchman  of  the  colony. 
Churchmen  are  Catholics,  even  more  than  they  are  Protestants. 
The  National  Church  of  England  has  never  even  called  herself 
Protestant,  and  it  is  only  by  an  accident  that  our  own  Church 
has  done  so.  "I  am  a  Catholic"  once  wrote  William  Penn, 
"  but  not  a  Roman  Catholic."  (Neill,  Terra  Maricr,  P.  73.) 
This  is  the  position  of  every  Churchman.  Thomas  Cornwaleys 
seems  to  have  thought  that  as  a  member  of  the  Catholic  Church 
of  England  he  was  more  of  a  Catholic  than  he  would  have  been 
if  he  had  been  a  member  of  the  Italian  Mission. 


THE  APPKAI.  TO  THE  LORD  PROPRIETARY.    247 

to  the  first  adventurers  are  still  unfulfilled  ;  and 
discontent,  in  consequence,  is  rife  in  the  colony. 
But  the  religious  difficulty  is  the  most  serious  one. 

Such  is  the  opposition  taken  by  the  foremost 
Protestant  Catholic  in  the  colony.  His  letter  is  a 
temperate,  3'et  earnest  protest  against  any  breach 
of  faith,  on  the  part  of  the  proprietary,  in 
matters  connected  either  with  religion  or  commerce, 
but  especially  against  his  allowing  the  Roman 
Catholic  Church  to  profit  by  the  foolish  mistakes 
of  inexperienced  legislators.  It  was  practically  a 
confession  that  the  Protestants  were  either  helpless 
to  protect  themselves,  or  had  been  hoodwinked 
into  passing  laws  which  had  imperilled  their 
liberties  as  Churchmen,  and  their  rights  as  English- 
men. The  real  object  of  that  legislation  was  now 
obvious.  It  was  for  the  benefit  of  the  Roman 
Church  in  Maryland.  On  no  other  h3^pothesis  can 
we  understand  the  writer's  despairing  feelings,  allied 
with  bitterness.  No  other  explanation  of  his  letter 
is  possible. 

The  vessel  which  bore  the  the  letter  of  the  Pro- 
testants' champion  also  bore  one  from  Thomas 
Copley,^  written  three  days  before  it,^  and  dealing 

^  Calvert  Papers,  Vol.  /,  P.  157. 

*  In  endorsing  the  letter  lie  had  received  from  Captain  Corn- 
waleys,  Lord  Baltimore  made  a  mistake  of  ten  days,  describing 
it  as  written  April  i6th.     Cornwaleys  himself  dated  it  April  6lh. 


248   THE  APPEAL  TO  THE  LORD  PROPRIETARY. 

with  precisely  the  same  subjects.  Father  Copley's 
relations  with  his  lordship  were  not  as  easy  as  were 
those  of  the  captain.  Reports  were  abroad  that  he 
and  his  colleagues  were  not  quite  as  loyal  as  they 
might  be.  After  attempting  an  explanation  of  this, 
a  somewhat  labored  one  to  be  sure,  and  not  very 
convincing,  the  Jesuit  priest  entered  upon  the  real 
business  of  his  communication.  He,  too,  writes 
about  the  laws  for  ratification,  but  "tell  it  not  in 
Gath,  publish  it  not  in  the  streets  of  Askelon,"  he 
meddles  so  little  with  political  matters  that  he  has 
only  just  for  the  first  time  hastily  read  the  laws  in 
question  !  How^ever,  if  he  might  venture  to  judge 
by  so  brief  an  acquaintance,  he  must  confess  they 
contained  some  things  he  was  not  at  all  satisfied 
with.  Unliappily  he  had  had  to  make  the  same 
confession  with  respect  to  the  laws  sent  to  them  by 
his  lordship.  These  were  even  more  objectionable 
still,  especially  the  new  Conditions  of  Plantations. 
But  Church  affairs  distress  him  more,  for  he  is  of 
the  opinion  that  God's  blessing  cannot  be  given  to 
much  which  had  been  proposed.  In  this  respect 
he  and  Thomas  Cornwaleys  agreed  well  together. 
But  they  soon  part  company.  That  which  Corn- 
waleys complained  of  so  bitterly  was  most  accepta- 
ble to  Copley,  who  naturally  says   nothing  what- 


THK  APPEAL  TO  THE  LORD  PROPRIETARY.    249 

ever  about  it  on  the  present  occasion.  That 
Roman  Catholicism  had  just  received  a  very  sub- 
substantial  concession  went  for  nothing.  He 
thinks  nothing  of  it  as  he  forwards  a  state- 
ment concerning  the  privileges  and  immunities 
that  he  desires  his  Church  shall  receive. 
But  first,  he  has  some  very  serious  complaints  to 
make.  Not  only  is  no  care  taken  to  promote  the 
conversion  of  the  Indians  ^ — although  just  in  what 
way  this  reflected  upon  Lord  Baltimore,  and  not 
upon  himself  and  his  brother  ecclesiastics,  the  Jesuit 
priest  does  not  say — but  there  is  no  attempt  to 
provide  for,  or  to  show  any  favor,  to  ecclesiastical 
persons.  It  was  actually  bruited  about  that  privi- 
leges were  not  due  to  them  jure  divino^  nor  until 
the  Commonwealth  had  granted  them. 

Still  more  galling  was  it  that  a  converted  Indian 
king  might  not  give  his  converter  so  much  land  as 
would  suffice  for  the  building  of  a  church.  From 
this  statement,  in  conjunction  with  Mr.  Copley's 
dealings  with  the  Indians,  I  infer  that,  in  his  judg- 
ment, at  least  several  thousand  acres  were  required 
to  accommodate  a  suitable  building.  Meanwhile 
about  his  own  very  extensive  transactions  in  land 

5  Davis,  The  Day  Star,  P.  165,  speaks  of  Lord  Baltimore  as 
"  the  patron  of  the  early  Roman  Catholic  Missions!" 


250   THE  APPEAL  TO  THE  LORD  PROPRIETARY. 

with  the  Indians  he  is  judiciously  silent.  He  even 
assures  Lord  Baltimore  that  he  will  take  no  land 
but  under  his  lordship's  title. 

His  next  grievance  was  the  provision  that  every 
manor  must  have  an  hundred  acres  in  glebe  land. 
To  Mr.  Copley  this  was  naturally  a  most  humil- 
iating condition,  besides  being  a  very  inconvenient 
one,  for  the  Roman  priests  in  Maryland  had 
blossomed  into  extensive  landowners  since  their 
arrival.  Could  it  indeed  be  that  Lord  Baltimore 
meant  that  they  should  set  apart  so  much  of  their 
land  for  the  support  of  the  Protestant  clergy? 
This  was  really  too  dreadful  to  contemplate.  Perish 
the  thought !  Yet  Lord  Baltimore's  injunctions  on 
this  point  were  but  the  following  out  of  the  old 
English  plan  of  providing  each  parish  church  w4th 
an  adequate  endowment  in  the  form  of  glebe  lands, 
so  that  it  could  be  worthily  supported.  Obviously 
his  aim  was  to  act  towards  his  distant  colony  in 
precisely  the  same  way  that  other  landlords  were 
accustomed  to  act  on  their  English  estates.  For 
this  purpose  we  shall  do  well  to  praise  Lord 
Baltimore. 

But  now  comes  the  worst  blunder  of  all.  Oh, 
the  pain  and  grief  it  causes  Mr.  Copley's  righteous 
soul.     In  a  catalogue  of  enormous  crimes,  perjury 


THE  APPEAL  TO  THE  LORD  PROPRIETARY.    251 

and  the  like,  was  numbered  the  "  exercisino;-  juris- 
diction and  authority  without  lawful  power  and 
commission  derived  from,  the  lord  proprietary." 
Thus  "even  by  Catholics  "  a  law  had  been  passed 
imder  which  any  Catholic  bishop  or  priest  mi^lit 
be  hanged  for  no  other  crime  than  exercising  his 
functions  in  Maryland,  without  having  first 
obtained  the  consent  of  the  secular  authority. 

Having  now  made  his  complaints  known  to  Lord 
Baltimore,  Copley,  fearing  his  lordship  may  not  do 
the  right  thing,  proceeds  with  fatherly  care  to  make 
certain  suggestions  for  his  guidance.     These  are : 

First;  that  before  doing  anything  about  the  laws 
proposed  he  would  read  over  and  ponder  well  the 
Bulla  Coense.  This  document  is  a  great  favorite  with 
Mr.  Copley.  He  has  that  strong  faith  in  its  efficacy 
that  some  people  have  in  certain  cure-all  remedies, 
w4iich  have  positively  never  been  known  to  fail. 
Remembering  its  anti-protestant  character,  I  can- 
not help  believing  that  if  Maryland  had  ever 
sought  the  services  of  a  grand  inquisitor  general,  a 
man  on  whom  Torquemada's  mantle  had  visibly 
fallen,  Mr.  Copley  would  have  been  the  very  man 
for  the  post,  he  having  the  making  of  an  ideal 
inquisitor. 

Secondly;  that  in  things  concerning  the  Church 


252    THE  APPEAL  TO  THE  LORD  PROPRIETARY. 

his  lordship  should  take  good  advice  of  the  Church 
— that  is,  of  course,  of  that  part  which  is  of  the 
Roman  obedience. 

Thirdly ;  that  his  lordship  would  send  liim  a 
a  private  order  that,  while  the  government  is 
Catholic,  they  may  enjoy  the  following  privileges : 
That  the  Church  and  their  houses  may  be  sanctu- 
ary ;  that  they  themselves,  their  domestics,  and 
half,  at  least,  of  their  planting  servants,  may  be 
free  from  public  taxes  and  services,  and  that  the 
rest  of  their  servants  and  their  tenants,  though 
outwardly  they  do  as  others  do,  yet  privately,  the 
custom  of  other  Catholic  countries  may  be  observed, 
so  that  Catholics,  out  of  bad  practice,  come  not  to 
forget  those  respects  which  they  owe  to  God  and 
His  Church ;  that  though  in  public  they  suffer 
their  course  to  be  heard  and  tried  by  public  magis- 
trates, yet  in  private  they  know  this  is  permitted 
only  for  a  time,  because  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction 
was  not  settled,  and,  finally,  that  though  the\' 
relinquished  the  use  of  many  ecclesiastical  privileges 
yet  that  it  should  be  left  to  their  discretion  to 
determine  when  it  was  requisite  to  do  so. 

At  length  Mr.  Copley  brings  his  letter  to  a  close. 
It  is  an  exquisite  production.  The  writer's  style 
is  inimitable.     Bv  turns  defiant  and  humble  ;  it  is 


THE  APPEAI.  TO  THE  I.ORD  PROPRIETARY.    253 

all  for  Lord  Baltimore's  good.  He  hopes  every- 
thing will  be  well,  but  he  is  not  over  sanguine.  He 
is  a  busy  man,  and  an  old  proverb  hath  it  that  a 
"busy  man  never  wants  woe,"  and  so  with  a  sad 
heart  and  gloomy  forebodings,  he  makes  an  end. 
He  has  stated  the  case  for  the  Roman  party  in 
Maryland,  and  he  can  do  no  more. 

lyord  Baltimore  was  aghast.  His  indorsement  of 
the  letter  shows  this,  that  indorsement  reading 
thus :  "  Mr.  Thomas  Copley  to  me,  from  St. 
Mary's,  herein  are  demands  of  very  extravagant 
privileges."  '^  There  is,  in  addition,  a  side-note  to  one 
of  the  foregoing  clauses  to  this  effect :  ''All  the 
attendants  as  well  as  servants,  he  here  intimates, 
ought  to  be  exempted  from  the  temporal  govern- 
ment."^ Roman  Catholic  though  he  was.  Lord 
Baltimore  might  well  stand  aghast  when  he 
received  Copley's  letter  and  read  therein  his  "very 
extravagant  demands."  Probably  as  an  honest 
man,  abhorring  hypocrisy,  the  suggestion  that  he 
should  make  a  secret  treaty  with  the  Romanists 
under  which  they  would  publicly  appear  to  be 
subservient  to  the   laws   like   other  men,    but  in 

^Calvert Papers,  Vol.  /,  P.  157. 
^  Calvert  Papers,  Vol.  I,  166. 


254   '^HE  APPEAL  TO  THE  LORD  PROPRIETARY. 

reality  free  from  them,  only  tendered  to  further 
embitter  his  relations  with  a  society  which  num- 
bered such  a  shining  ornament  as  Mr.  Copley 
among  its  honored  members. 

When  these  two  letters  reached  Lord  Baltimore 
affairs  in  England  were  casting  dark  shadows 
before  them.  We  do  not  know  how  Lord  Balti- 
more gave  his  judgment  at  the  time.  One  would 
suppose  that  his  mind  was  quickly  made  up.  As 
between  the  captain  and  the  priest  there  could  be 
no  question  who  was  the  wiser  counsellor.  It  was 
no  time  to  be  establishing  Romanism  in  an  English 
colony.  He  would  act  wisely  in  having  no  legisla- 
tion in  his  province  not  in  harmony  with  English 
statutes.  The  Protestant  Catholic  layman,  and  not 
the  Jesuit  priest,  had  spoken  best  for  Mars'land. 
Indeed  Lord  Baltimore  had  every  reason  for  follow- 
ing the  advice  of  Captain  Cornwaleys,  since  in  so 
doing  he  was  as  much  forwarding  his  own  interests 
as  he  was  maintaining  the  rights  of  the  Protestants. 
For  it  was  not  for  his  welfare  or  peace  of  mind, 
that  there  should  be  any  impermm  in  imperio  in 
that  province,  of  which  he  was  absolute  lord  pro- 
prietary under  the  English  Crown.  To  a  man  of 
his  disposition  a  power  over  which  he  had  no  con- 


THE  APPEAL  TO  THE  LORD  PROPRIETARY.    255 

trol  must  have  been  personally  very  distasteful, 
and  as  dangerous  as  it  was  distasteful,  since  it  was 
sure  to  bring-  him  into  conflict  with  English  public 
opinion.  So  that  however  good  a  Romanist  he 
was,  and  however  anxious  he  may  have  been 
to  further  the  interest  of  his  Church,  he  could  not 
prudently  have  followed  Copley's  advice.  He 
knew  the  law  and  he  was  without  excuse  if  he 
broke  it,  and  he  had  no  intention  of  being  pilloried 
as  an  example  of  disobedience  to  it,^  nor  of 
giving  hostages  to  fortune.  Neither  would  he 
imperil  his  property  by  any  ill-timed  generosity. 
Indeed,  so  impartially  did  he  act,  that  one  would 
scarcely  have  suspected  him  of  being  a  Roman 
Catholic  at  all,  much  to  the  chagrin  of  the  Jesuits 
who  had  reckoned  upon  manipulating  him  as  a  son 
of  "the  Church."  Their  extreme  disappointment, 
and  the  depth  of  their  resentment,  may  be  accurately 
gauged  from  Mr.  Copley's  warning  that  Baltimore 
was  liable  to  bring  upon  himself  the  terrible 
censures  of  Bulla  Coense.  Was  he  aware  of  this  ? 
Or  had  he  no  fear  of  it  ?  Even  among  heretics 
"the  Church"  enjoyed  greater  privileges  than  it 
did  under  his  rule. 

Such  was  the  man  with  whom  the  Jesuits  had  to 
^Neill,  Terra  Marice  P.  132. 


256   THE  APPEAL  TO  THE  LORD  PROPRIETARY. 

deal.  He  was  not,  it  must  be  allowed,  promising 
material  on  which  to  work,  and  recognizing  this 
they  groaned  under  the  yoke.  They  might  as  well, 
aye  better,  have  sta}'ed  in  England,  as  live  under 
the  absolute  lordship  of  one  who  seemed  to  put 
beaver-skins  and  corn  before  the  Kingdom  of  God 
and  His  righteousness.  Yet,  had  they  known  it, 
their  safety  lay  only  in  obedience.  The  storm 
which  swept  them  away  from  Maryland  would 
never  have  broken  had  they  listened  to  the  advice 
of  the  proprietary  and  followed  his  injunctions.^ 
But  this  w^as  the  one  thing  they  did  not  intend  to 
do.  In  Maryland  at  any  rate  they  had  the  upper 
hand.  It  was  all  v&ry  well  for  the  lord  proprietary 
to  lay  down  plans  but  it  was  another  thing  to 
enforce  them.  Communication  between  him  and 
his  distant  province  was  often  slow  and  uncertain, 
and  always  irregular.  Much  might  be  done  of 
which  the  absent  lord  would  never  hear  at  all,  and 
at  any  rate  months  must  elapse  before  any  course 
of  action  entered  upon  by  them  could  be  repudi- 
ated. And  advantage  was  not  seldom  taken  of 
this.  Then,  too,  the}'  controlled  the  young  Gov- 
ernor of  Maryland  and  as  long  as  they  could  do 
this  they  had   little   to   fear.     And   so   it  speedily 

became  evident  that  it   is  one  thing  to  give  laws, 
9  Calveri  Papers,   Vol.  /,  P.  132. 


THE  APPEAL  TO  TPIK  IvORD  PROPRIETARY.    257 

and  another  to  enforce  them,  even  although  you 
have  right,  justice  and  sweet  reasonableness  on  your 
side,  when  dealing  with  men  who  have  their  own 
purposes  to  serve  ;  and  yet  upon  whose  co-operation 
you  depend  for  success.  The  precautions  of  Lord 
Baltimore  were  excellent,  but 

The  best -laid  plans  o'  mice  an'  men 
Gang  aft  a-gley. 

And  so,  consequently,  notwithstanding  the  law 
and  the  voice  of  authority,  the  Jesuits  entered  upon 
a  course  which  only  an  enemy  would  have  desired 
them  to  take.  Ignoring  alike  the  dictates  of  pru- 
dence and  the  injunctions  of  the  lord  proprietary, 
they  had  began  a  contest  for  supremacy  in  Mary- 
land which  was  to  end  in  their  own  undoing ;  for 
supremacy  was  just  what  they  could  not  have  in 
any  English  colony.  Had  they  been  satisfied  to 
contend  for  liberty,  to  practice  their  religion  in 
peace  and  quietness,  to  minister  unostentatiously 
to  their  own  people  and  to  carry  the  tidings  of  the 
Gospel  to  the  heathen  Indians,  they  would  not 
merely  have  been  left  unmolested,  but  they  would 
have  gone  far  towards  realising  the  dreams  of  their 
superiors  in  making  Maryland  a  Roman  Catholic 
province.  But  they  were  not  wise  in  their  genera- 
tion, and  as  they  chose  to  pursue  a  policy  of 
aggression  they  were  overwhelmed  by  disaster. 


CHAPTER  XV. 
BATTLES  WITH  THE  JESUITS— THE   DE- 
FEAT OF  LORD  BALTIMORE. 
1638 — 1641. 

"  '  Twas  blow  for  blow,  disputing  inch  by  inch, 
For  one  would  not  retreat,  nor  t'other  flinch." 

— Byron  :  "Don  Juan." 

The  letters  of  Captain  Cornwaleys  and  Father 
Copley,  must  have  been  anything  but  pleasant  read- 
ing to  Lord  Baltimore.  At  a  time  when  he  had 
practically  made  himself  bankrupt  through  having 
put  all  his  available  assets  into  his  IMaryland  ven- 
ture, and  just  at  the  moment  when  he  was  beginning 
to  expect  a  rich  return  from  that  investment,  he  is 
confronted  with  the  spectacle  of  a  religious  quarrel, 
parting  his  settlers  into  two  rival  religious  factions, 
and  dividing  Maryland  herself  into  two  hostile 
camps.  It  was  as  if  a  chasm  had  suddenly  yawned 
at  his  feet,  into  which  at  any  moment  might  be  ir- 
retrievably precipitated  all  his  expenditure  in  the 
past  ;  all  his  brilliant  prospects  for  the  future  ;  and 
even  his  very  tenure  of  the  province  itself. 


BATTLES   WITH   THE   JESUITS.  259 

Other  information  which  came  to  Lord  Baltimore 
abont  the  same  time  tended  still  further  to  increase 
his  anxiety.  This  was  concerning  the  conduct  of 
Father  Copley.  Notwithstanding  Copley's  profes- 
sions of  loyalty,  and  his  assurance  that  under  no 
circumstances  would  he  receive  land  from  the  In- 
dians, except  under  Baltimore's  seal,  it  now  trans- 
pired that  at  the  very  time  he  was  making  this 
statement  he  was  secretly  acquiring  from  King 
Pathuen  the  valuable  estate  of  Mattapany,  near  the 
mouth  of  the  Patuxent  River.  ^  This  alone  was 
bad  enough,  but  what  lent  the  affair  an  importance 
out  of  all  proportion  to  itself,  and  caused  to  the  lord 
proprietary  infinite  anxiety  and  alarm  was  the  ac- 
tion of  the  Jesuit  Society  which,  far  from  disclaim- 
ing responsibility  for  its  agent's  misdoings,  boldly 
took  his  part  and  justified  his  conduct.  Moreover, 
not  content  with  doing  this,  for  the  sake  we  may 
presume,  of  consistency,  the  society  openly  disputed 
Lord  Baltimore's  title  to  any  lands  not  ceded  to  him 
by  the  Indians.  It  even  went  on  to  deny  the  right 
of  the  English  Crown  to  grant  Maryland,  and  scoffed 
at  his  lordship's  claims  as  againt  the  Indian  kings.  ^ 

Fortunately,  there  was  now  one  man  in  the  colony 

upon  whose  activity,  ability  and  loyalty  Baltimore 

1  Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.  No.  18.     Pp.  56,  63. 
^Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  9.     P.  249 


26o  BATTLES   WITH    THE   JESUITS. 

could  confidently  rely  to  cope  with  the  crisis  which 
had  so  unexpectedly  arisen,  and  to  avert  the  serious 
dangers  which  thus  threatened  the  very  existence 
of  his  colony.  This  man  was  John  Lewger,  the 
secretary,  who  had  arrived  in  the  province  on  Nov. 
28th,  1637.  Lewger  was  a  Roman  Catholic,  but  of 
that  moderate  and  conservative  type  which  found 
no  favor  with  such  men  as  Copley.  He  liad  form- 
erly been  a  clergyman  of  the  English  Church,  but, 
unlike  the  majority  of  converts,  had  not  thought  it 
necessary  on  joining  the  Roman  Church  to  become 
more  ultramontane  than  the  ultramontanes  them- 
selves. They  do  Rome  an  injustice  who  assert  that 
she  crushes  out  of  her  children  all  individuality. 
Cardinal  Manning  did  not  see  eye  to  eye  with  Car- 
dinal Vaughan.  Even  Leo  XIII  does  not  walk  in 
the  footsteps  of  Pius  IX.  Neither  was  Lewger  a 
Romanist  after  the  Copley  type.  He  was  of  course 
always  a  persona  non  grata  to  the  Jesuits.  Accept- 
able to  the  more  conser\^ative  Romanists,  who  were 
for  the  most  part  like  himself  scholars,  and  gentle- 
men, the  Jesuits,  in  IMaryland  conventional  phrase, 
"  had  no  use  for  him."  To  them  he  was  only  an 
ex-minister  who  "  yet  retained  much  of  the  leaven 
of  heresy."  ^  But  none  perceived  more  clearly  than 
^Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  18.     P.  80. 


BATTLES   WITH   THE   JESUITS.  26 1 

he  did  the  dangerous  tendency  of  their  position,  and 
it  is  his  hand  that  we  see  in  the  law  which  provided 
that  Roman  ecclesiastics  who  presumed  to  exercise 
their  office  in  Maryland  witliout  a  license  should  be 
liable  to  be  put  to  death.  No  wonder  the  Jesuits 
did  not  love  him.  Evidently  he  was  "  a  man  who 
had  understanding  of  the  times  to  know  what  Israel 
ought  to  do." 

Lord  Baltimore,  confidently  relying  on  the  co- 
operation of  this  able,  learned  and  clear-sighted 
secretary,  devoted  to  his  interests,  and  having  the 
advantage  of  being  on  the  spot,  lost  no  time  in 
instructing  him  to  take  up  the  gauge  of  battle 
which  the  Jesuit  priests  had  thrown  down.  Thus 
instructed,  Lewger  at  once  opened  an  anti- Jesuit 
campaign,  on  the  points  at  issue,  in  the  House  of 
Assembly,  which  met  on  the  25th  of  October.  1640.'^ 
The  account  of  the  beginning  of  hostilities  is  best 
given  in  the  words  of  the  Jesuits  themselves : 
"Therefore  this  Secretary  having  summoned  the 
Parliament  in  Maryland,  composed  zvith  few  excep- 
tions of  heretics^  and  presided  over  by  himself,  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord  Baltimore  himself,  he 
attempted  to  pass  the  following  laws  repugnant  to 
the  Catholic  faith  and  ecclesiastical  immunities : 
^Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  iS.     P.  63. 


262  BATTLES   WITH   THE   JESUITS. 

That  no  virgin  can  inherit,  unless  she  marries 
before  twenty-nine  years  of  age  ;  that  no  ecclesiastic 
shall  enjoy  any  privilege,  except  such  as  he  is  able 
to  show  ex  ScripHcra^  nor  to  gain  anything  for  the 
Church,  except  by  gift  of  a  Prince,  nor  to  accept 
any  site  for  a  church,  or  cemetery,  nor  any  founda- 
tion from  a  convert  Indian  King,  nor  shall  anyone 
depart  from  the  province  even  to  preach  the  Gospel 
to  the  Infidels  by  authority  of  the  See  Apostolic, 
without  a  license  from  the  lay  magistrate ;  nor 
shall  anyone  exercise  jurisdiction  within  the  prov- 
ince which  is  not  derived  from  the  Baron,  and  such 
like."' 

From  the  Jesuit  point  of  view  this  legislation 
was  sufficiently  drastic  for  all  purposes.  But  Lord 
Baltimore's  own  measures  at  headquarters  were 
even  more  drastic  still.  Without  waiting  for  the 
result  of  Maryland  legislation,  Baltimore  had  deter- 
mined to  cut  the  gordian  knot  by  demanding  the 
immediate  and  complete  removal  from  his  province 
of  the  Jesuit  missionaries.  We  find  him  therefore 
soon  after  the  adjournment  of  the  General  x\ssem- 
bly  of  1640,  petitioning  the  Sacred  Congregation 
of  the  Propagation  of  the  Faith  to  remove  the 
refractory  priests.     In  August   1641    this  petition 

"^Ibid.    P.  81. 


BATTLES   WITH   THE   JESUITS.  263 

was  favorably  acted  upon,  and  Dom  Rosetti,  titular 
Archbishop  of  Tarsus,  with  a  body  of  secular 
priests,  was  appointed  to  take  charge  of  the  Mary- 
land Mission/'  But  the  fathers  had  yet  to  be  heard 
from.  They  not  unnaturally  objected  to  such  a 
summary  dismissal.  They  were  not  conscious  of 
having  done  wrong  to  any  man.  Rather  did 
they  feel  that  a  grievous  wrong  had  been  done 
them.  Contending  that  they  had  been  misrep- 
resented and  misunderstood,  and  asserting  that 
they  were  suffering  at  the  hands  of  an  auto- 
cratic, and  not  over  orthodox  secretary,  whose 
enmity  they  had  unjustly  incurred,  they 
offered  a  respectful  but  firm  protest  against  thus 
being  ignominiously  sent  back  to  England.  "  The 
Fathers,"  they  said,  concluding  a  somewhat  lengthy 
protest  which  went  over  the  whole  ground,  "  do  not 
refuse  to  make  way  for  other  laborers,  but  they 
humbly  submit  for  consideration  whether  it  is  ex- 
pedient to  remove  those  who  first  entered  into  that 
vineyard,  at  their  own  expense,  who  for  seven  }'ears 
have  endured  want  and  sufferings,  etc.,  who  have 
lost  four  of  their  own  confreres,  laboring  faithfully 

^''Records  of  the  English  Province  of  the  Society  of  Jesus,''' 
edited  by  the  Jesuit  Father  Foley,  and  published  in  London,  in 
five  volumes,  in  1877,  1878  and  1879,  Vol.  Ill,  7th  series.  P.  365. 
See  also  M.  H.  S.,  F.  P.,  No.  18.     P.  64. 


264  BATTLES   WITH   THE    JESUITS. 

unto  death  ;  who  have  defended  sound  doctrine  and 
the  liberty  of  the  Church,  with  odium  and  temporal 
loss  to  themselves,  and  zuho  are  lear7ied  in  the  lan- 
guage of  the  Savages^  ^  of  which  the  priests  to  be 
substituted  b}'  the  Baron  Baltimore  are  entirely  ig- 
norant, and  which  priests  either  allow  or  defend 
that  doctrine  from  which  it  must  needs  be  that  con- 
tentions and  scandals  should  arise,  and  the  spark  of 
faith  be  extinguished,  which  begins  to  be  kindled 
in  the  breast  of  the  infidels.  ^ 

It  was  doubtless  due  to  this  appeal  that  Dom 
Rosetti  never  saw  ]Maryland,  and  that  the  Jesuit 
priests  went  on  their  way  without  interference  from 
their  superiors,  with  the  result  that  Baltimore  was 
obliged  to  give  his  attention  to  the  devising  of  other 
means  of  getting  rid  of  these  troublesome  ecclesias- 
tics. His  failure  to  accomplish  his  aims  in  other 
ways  at  any  rate  satisfactorily  accounts  for  the  issu- 
ing, on   November   loth,   1641,   of  new  Conditions 

'  Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  7.  Excerpta  Ex  Diversis  Lit- 
tcris  IMissionariorum.     Pp.  84  and  85. 

The  claim  that  the  missionaries  were  learned  in  the  languages 
of  the  savages  hardly  agrees  with  the  statements  of  the  next 
year's  report.  "  For  the  difBculty  of  this  language  is  so  great, 
that  none  of  us  can  yet  converse  with  the  Indians  without  an 
interpreter — a  statement  which  is  in  strict  accordance  with  their 
practice  of  always  being  accompanied  b}-  an  interpreter. 

*  Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  iS.     P.  82. 


BATTLES   WITH   THE   JESUITS.  265 

of  Plantation,  to  take  effect  on  the  Festival  of  the 
Annunciation  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  1642. 
In  these  conditions  were  two  sections  aimed  directly 
and  exclusively  at  the  Jesuits.  By  these  sections 
all  fraternities  and  associations,  spiritual  or  temporal, 
were  prohibited  from  holding  land  without  the  as- 
sent of  the  civil  magistrate.  ^  These  anti-clerical 
prohibitions,  which  were  in  agreement  with  English 
Statute  Law,  rendered  null  and  void  the  Assembly 
Act  of  1639  w^hich  had  given  to  "Holy  Church" 
her  privileges  and  immunities.     But  they  did  far 

^(5)  "Moreover,  that  no  Corporation,  Society,  Fraternity, 
Municipality,  Political  Body  (whether  it  be  Ecclesiastical  or  tem- 
poral), shall  be  capable  of  or  shall  have  the  benefit, in  virtue  of  the 
preceding  conditions  of  plantation,  of  receiving  for  itself,  of 
inheriting,  of  possessing  or  enjoying  any  lands  in  the  said  Prov- 
ince, either  in  right  of  their  ovv-n  or  of  any  other  person  or 
persons,  for  their  own  use,  interest  or  benefit,  or  in  trust  for 
them  without  farther  particular  and  special  license  first  had  and 
obtained  for  this  end  under  the  hand  and  seal  of  his  Lordship. 
And  if  perchance  any  such  grant  should  happen  to  be  given  to 
or  obtained  by  any  Corporation,  Society,  Fraternity,  Munici- 
pality, Political  body  (whether  this  be  Ecclesiastical  or  tem- 
poral), or  any  person  or  persons  whatsoever  for  their  use, 
interest  or  benefit,  or  in  trust  for  them  without  such  farther 
particular  and  special  license,  as  above,  first  had  and  obtained, 
that  then  all  such  grants  of  whatsoever  land  within  the  Province 
so  made  or  to  be  made,  as  above,  shall  be  by  the  very  fact  void 
of  all  intent  and  purpose." 

(6)  "Moreover,  that  no  person  or  persons,  whatsoever 
be  their  condition  or  state,  nor  their  heirs  nor  assigns,  shall 
give,  concede,  alienate  any  lands  or  tenements  within  the  said 


266  BATTLES   WITH   THE   JESUITS. 

more  than  that.  In  Lord  Baltimore's  anxiety  to 
annihilate  Jesuit  influence  these  new  Conditions 
pressed  far  more  severely  upon  the  Society  than 
even  English  law  did.  It  really  seemed  as  if  the  one 
subject  of  now  all  absorbing  interest  to  Baltimore 
was  how  to  destroy  Jesuit  influence  in  IMaryland, 
let  the  cost  be  what  it  might. 

The  fate  of  these  Conditions  when  they  reached 
the  province  is  very  suggesti\'e.  Their  crux  was 
undoubtedly  the  anti-Jesuit  sections.  Yet  appar- 
ently these  very  sections  alone  were  never 
published  in  Maryland.  Even  to  the  secretary,  to 
say  nothing  of  the  governor,  they  seemed  too 
radical.  Although  these  oflicials  well  knew  what 
obedience  required  they  actually  went  to  the 
priests  for  a  conference.  Nothing  can  show  more 
conclusively  than  this  the  nature  of  the  control 
which  the  Jesuits  exercised  in  the  province,  nor 
more  clearly  demonstrates  the  precise   meaning  of 

Province,. assigned  or  conceded,  or  to  be  assigned  or  to  be  con- 
ceded to  him  or  them  to  any  Corporation,  Society,  Congregation, 
Fraternity,  Municipality  or  body,  Politic  (whether  this  be  Eccle- 
siastical or  temporal ) ,  or  to  any  person  or  persons  whatsoever 
in  trust  or  to  such  use  or  uses,  or  to  any  use  or  uses  contained, 
mentioned  or  prohibited  in  any  Statute  of  Mortmain  made 
before  in  the  Kingdom  of  England  without  particular  and 
special  license  before  had  and  obtained  for  this  end  under  the 
hand  and  seal  of  his  Eordship."  See  3/d.  His.  Soc,  F.  /*.,  No. 
g.     P.  250,  Streeter. 


BATTLES  WITH   THK    JESUITS.  267 

Father  Copley's  phrase  :  "  While  the  Government 
is  Catholique."  The  account  of  the  interview  is  pre- 
served in  the  handwriting  of  the  secretary/*^  and 
very  painful  reading  it  is,  as  we  read  of  how  he 
and  the  governor  went  to  the  "good  men  about 
difficulties,"  and  how,  entrenching  themselves 
behind  the  terrific  thunders  of  the  bull.  In  Cocna 
Domini^  the  priests  declined  obedience,  with  the 
result  that  the  obnoxious  sections  were  not  pub- 
lished, even  Mr.  Lewger  deeming  it  best  not  to 
push  matters  to  extreme  by  publishing  them. 

The  Jesuits  had  triumphed.  Poor  Captain  Corn- 
wale^^s  must  have  been  in  despair.  But  all  Mary- 
land knew  that  it  was  not  with  Lord  Baltimore's 
consent.  And  the  people  hastened  to  show  their 
confidence  in  him.  In  the  Assembly  which  m.et 
March  21st,  1642,  the  members  "out  of  their 
desire  to  retiirn  his  Lordship  some  testimony 
of  their  gratitude  for  his  great  charge  and 
solicitude  in  maintaining  the  government  and 
protecting  the  inhabitants  in  their  persons, 
rights  and  liberties,  and  to  contribute  some 
support  to  it,  so  far  as  the  young  and  poor  estate  of 
the  colony  will  yet  bear,"  passed  "  an  act  for  grant- 
ing a  subsidy  of  fifteen  pounds  of  tobacco  for  every 

I''  Ibid,  P.  251. 


2  68  BATTLES   WITH   THE   JESUITS. 

taxable  inhabitant  of  the  Colony,  the  first  yet  im- 
posed on  the  settlers."  '^  This  act  mnst  have  been 
peculiarly  grateful  to  Lord  Baltimore,  entireh' 
dependent  as  he  was  at  this  time  upon  the  liospi- 
tality  of  his  wife's  relations."  ^- 

After  this  victory  of  the  Jesuits  there  was  a  tem- 
porary cessation  of  hostilities.  It  was  as  if  peace 
had  been  established.  Possibly  the  priests  thought 
that  Lord  Baltimore  had  accepted  the  situation  and 
was  about  to  make  the  best  of  it.  But  the}'  did 
not  know  the  man  with  whom  they  were  dealing  if 
they  thought  this.  Between  himself  and  them,  at 
all  events  between  his  aims  and  theirs,  a  gulf  vras 
fixed  which  could  not  be  bridged  over.  For  Lord 
Baltimore,  Roman  Catholic  though  he  was,  was  no 
Jesuit,  and  he  would  have  no  Jesuit  priests  inter- 
fering with  his  cherished  project  of  making  his 
colonial  venture  a  brilliant  success.  That  the}'  had 
so  far  successfully  opposed  him,  and  maintained 
their  independence,  was  no  real  gain  to  them,  for  it 
only  left  him  more  determined  than  ever  to  curtail 
their  zeal,  to  restrict  their  aims  and  to  prove   to 

^^Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.   P.,  No.  9.    P.  255. 

'■^  Cecilius  Calvert,  after  his  marriage  \vith  the  daughter  of  the 
first  Lord  Arundel,  of  Wardour,  lived  at  Hook  House,  the 
dower-house  of  I^ord  Arundel.  See  Xeill,  Founders  of  Diary- 
land.     P.  lOI. 


BATTLES   WITH   THE    JESUITS.  269 

them  more  effectually  that  he,  and  not  they,  was 
the  master  of  Maryland.  It  surely  shows  how 
little  the  society  understood  the  depth  of  Lord 
Baltimore's  resentment,  and  the  nature  of  his 
antagonism,  when,  no  long  timiC  after  they  had 
refused  his  request  for  the  withdrawal  of  the  priests, 
they  actually  sought  his  permission  for  the  sailing 
of  two  additional  missionaries.  Naturally  the 
request  was  instantly  refused.  Already  there  were 
more  of  their  order  in  Maryland  than  he  wanted,  as 
he  thought  he  had  made  quite  plain.  If  he  could 
not  get  rid  of  those  already  there  he  could  at  least 
prevent  others  going.  The  refusal  caused  conster- 
nation in  the  Jesuit  camp.  Finding  him  resolute 
the  Jesuits  hastened  to  make  terms  with  him,  and 
they  agreed  to  abide  by  the  following  concordat : 
''  Considering  the  dependence  of  the  government  of 
Maryland  on  the  state  of  England,  unto  which  it 
must  (as  near  as  may  be)  be  conformable,  no  ecclesias- 
tical person  whatever,  inhabiting  or  being  within 
the  said  province,  ought  to  pretend  or  expect,  nor 
is  Lord  Baltimore  or  any  of  his  officers,  ( although 
they  be  Roman  Catholics  )  obliged  in  conscience  to 
allow  to  said  ecclesiastics,  in  said  province,  any 
more  or  other  privileges,  exemptions,  or  immuni- 
ties   for   their   persons,    lands    or    goods,    than    is 


2/0  BATTLES   WITH   THE    JESUITS. 

allowed  by  his  majesty  or  his  officers  or  magistrates 
to  like  persons  in  England.  i\nd  any  magistrate 
may  proceed  against  the  person,  goods,  etc.,  of  snch 
ecclesiastic,  for  the  doing  of  right  and  justice  to 
another,  or  for  maintaining  his  proprietary  preroga- 
tive and  jurisdictions,  just  as  against  any  other 
person,  residing  in  said  province.  These  things  to 
be  done,  without  incurring  the  censure  of  buUce 
coencs^  or  committing  a  sin  for  so  doing.  ^■'''  The 
society  even  went  on  to  admit  that  it  had  no  right 
to  the  lands  given  to  its  agents  by  the  King  of  the 
Patuxents,  or  other  Indian  chieftains,  and  it 
promised  to  execute  an  instrument  placing  it  out  of 
the  power  of  its  agents  to  offend  in  the  future,  as 
they  had  done  in  the  past.  It  even  consented  to 
withdraw  its  claims  for  exemption  from  temporal 
jurisdiction. 

On  this  understanding  the  missionaries  were 
allowed  to  depart.  Alas  for  the  trustfulness  of 
Lord  Baltimore  !  As  soon  as  these  new  mission- 
aries arrived  in  ]\Iaryland  they  repudiated  the 
agreement,  and  became  one  with  their  rebellious 
brethren.  In  the  Jesuit  letter  of  1642  the  writer 
thus  glosses  over  this  discreditable  breach  of  trust : 
"One  thing,  however,  remains  not  altogether  to  be 

^^  Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  9.    P.  254. 


BATTLES   WITH   THE    JESUITS.  2/1 

omitted,  though  to  be  touched  on  lightly,  to  wit : 
this  thing,  that  occasion  of  suffering  has  not 
been  wanting  from  those,  from  whom  rather 
it  was  proper  to  expect  aid  and  protection  ;  who, 
too  intent  upon  their  own  affairs,  have  not  feared 
to  violate  the  immunities  of  the  Church,  by  using 
their  endeavors,  that  laws  of  this  kind  formerly 
passed  in  England  and  unjustly  observed  there, 
may  attain  like  force  here,  to  wit :  that  it  shall  not 
be  lawful  for  any  person  or  community,  even 
ecclesiastical,  in  any  wise,  even  by  gift,  to  acquire 
or  possess  any  land,  unless  the  permission  of  the 
civil  magistrate  first  be  obtained.  Which  thing, 
when  our  people  declared  it  to  be  repugnant  to  the 
lav/s  of  the  church,  two  priests  were  sent  from 
England  who  might  teach  the  contrary.  But  the 
reverse  of  what  was  expected  happened  ;  for  our 
reasons  being  heard,  and  the  thing  itself  being 
more  clearly  understood,  they  easily  fell  in  wdtli  our 
opinion,  and  the  laity  in  like  manner  generally."  ^^ 
So  the  solemn  agreement  having  served  its  purpose 
w^as  flung  aside  as  the  hunter  flings  aside  the  burnt 
cartridge  which  has  brought  down  his  game.  But 
as  we  have  seen,  these  "good  men"  did  not  num- 
ber a  love  of  truth  among  the  virtues  with  which 
^^  Excerpta  Ex  Diversis  Litteris  Missionariorunt .     P.  88. 


272  BATTLES   WITH   THE    JESUITS. 

they  were  equipped.  They  were  not  of  those  who 
swear  unto  their  neighbor  and  disappoint  him  not, 
though  it  were  to  their  own  hindrance.  Witli  the 
continued  submission  and  subservience  to  the 
priests  of  his  own  brother,  and  the  unwillingness 
of  even  the  devoted,  and  thoroughly  sympathetic 
Lewger  to  follow  out  his  directions  to  the  end  ; 
above  all  with  the  broken  pledges  of  the  priests 
before  him,  one  almost  hears  Lord  Baltimore 
exclaim  :  Ye  disciples  of  Ignatius  Loyola,  ye  are 
too  hard  for  me,  ''and  I  am  this  day  weak,  though 
anointed  king."  ^'' 

After  all,  we  need  not  wonder  at  the  difficulties  of 
Lord  Baltimore  with  the  "good  men."  It  was  a 
very  old  fight  which  w^as  being  renewed  on  Mary- 
land soil.  Should  the  Church  be  independent  of 
all  civil  authority,  rendering  it  no  allegiance,  and 
discharging  no  duties  towards  it?  The  Jesuits 
boldly  claim  that  it  should.  And  for  a  time  tlie}' 
triumphed.  But  their  victory  meant  utter  ruin  for 
Baltimore.  There  can  be  onl}-  one  supreme  pov\er 
in  any  land. 

Lord  Baltimore  was  exceedingly  unfortunate  in 
having  to  fight  this  question  out  so  far  from   the 

^^  II  Sam.  2  :  39. 


BATTLES   WITH    THE    JESUITS.  273 

base  of  operations,  but  he  was  more  unfortunate 
still  in  having  the  Jesuit  Society  as  his  opponent. 
For  that  society  has  always  been  a  thorn  in  the 
side  even  of  the  strongest  and  best  settled  govern- 
ments. It  has  a  well  deserved  reputation  of 
shrinking  from  nothing  that  will  advance  either  its 
own  interests  or  the  interests  of  its  Church.  In- 
deed, its  never  ceasing  efforts  since  its  inception  in 
1534  mitil  now  to  control  for  its  own  purposes  the 
governments  of  the  world,  has  again  and  again 
caused  even  Roman  Catholic  countries  to  pro- 
hibit its  existence  within  their  borders,  so  exceed- 
ingly mischievous  and  harmful  has  its  influence 
always  been,  wherever  its  principles  have  had  time 
to  bring  forth  their  fruit.  That  these  governments 
were  justified  in  their  action  we  have  evidence  of  a 
very  remarkable  character.  By  one  of  the  infalli- 
ble Pontiffs,  Clement  XIV.,  in  the  celebrated  bull, 
^^Doniimis  ac  Redemptor  Noster^^''  the  society  was 
suppressed  in  all  the  states  of  Christendom  "for  the 
peace  of  the  Church."  It  was  therefore  with  a 
strange  want  of  foresight,  and  an  utterly  unac- 
countable lack  of  appreciation  of  the  gravity  of  the 
step  he  was  taking  that  Lord  Baltimore  ever  per- 
mitted the  Jesuits  to  get  a  foothold  in  his  province. 
For  once  removed  from  the  restraints  imposed  upon 


274  BATTLES   WITH   THE    JESUITS. 

them  ill  England,  their  conduct  had  soon  alienated 
the  best  men  in  his  province,  spread  sectarian  bit- 
terness, stirred  up  religious  strife,  arrayed  men  in 
two  parties  and  speedily,  as  the  result  of  it  all, 
brought  their  patron  into  conflict  with  the  authori- 
ties in  England,  creating  an  impression  there,  never 
wholly  removed,  that  the  Roman  Church  had  an 
undue  and  dangerous  influence  in  Mar^dand. 

We  may  perhaps  assume  that  Lord  Baltimore, 
with  a  large-hearted  charity,  which  always  does  a 
man  infinite  credit,  though  it  is  not  ahvays  to  his 
financial  advantage,  had  believed  better  things  of 
his  Maryland  priests,  as  he  remembered  the  splen- 
did work  done  in  other  lands  by  the  order.  It  was, 
indeed,  easy  to  think  of  the  Jesuits  as  pioneers  of 
missionary  enterprise,  for  they  had  often  been  the 
first  to  enter  upon  unknown  fields,  and  claim  them 
for  Christ  and  the  Church,  especially  in  America. 
"The  history  of  their  labors,"  writes  Bancroft,  "  is 
connected  with  the  origin  of  ever>^  celebrated  town 
in  the  annals  of  French  America,  not  a  cape  was 
turned,  not  a  river  entered,  but  a  Jesuit  led  the 
way  !  "  Moreover,  obedience  was  the  rule  of  their 
life.  They  were  emphatically  "the  men  who  obey 
orders."  So  he  might  have  hoped  that  all  would 
go  well.      But   then  it  was   not   his   orders  they 


BATTLES   WITH   THE   JESUITS.  275 

were  pledged  to  obey,  even  tliougli  he  was  Lord 
Proprietary  of  Maryland. 

If  he  had  forgotten  this  he  paid  dearly  for  his 
error.  He  had  sown  the  wind  and  he  was  to  reap 
the  whirlwind.  Thrice  that  mistake  cost  him,  or 
his  family,  the  loss  of  the  province.  On  the  third 
occasion  the  only  condition  on  which  it  could  be 
restored  was  that  his  descendant  abandon  the 
Roman  Church  and  become  an  Anglican,  a  condi- 
tion which  Benedict  Leonard  Calvert,  in  the  spirit 
of  Henry  of  Navarre,  who  thought  Paris  "worth  a 
mass"  found  it  not  difficult  to  comply  with.  And 
in  his  days  the  Calvert  family  returned  perma- 
nently to  the  old  Church  of  the  land,  the  Church  of 
their  forefathers. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

GATHERING   CLOUDS. 

1642 — 1648. 

The  sky 
Is  overcast,  and  musters  muttering  thunder, 
In  clouds  that  seem  ajjproaching  fast,  and  sho'>v, 
In  forked  flashes  a  commanding  tempest. 

— Byron. 

Tidings  of  the  Jesuits'  doings  and  of  the  trouble 
occasioned  thereby  soon  reached  England,  and  there, 
like  seeds  falling  on  a  rich  and  fertile  soil,  they 
forthwith  produced  an  abundant  harvest.  At  once 
Baltimore's  enemies  seized  upon  the  reports  as  a 
pretext  for  efforts  to  deprive  him  of  his  province. 
The  experiment,  it  \Yas  claimed,  of  giving  to  a 
Roman  Catholic  ample  and  generous  powers  over 
the  fortunes  of  English  subjects  had  been  tried  and 
had  been  proved  a  dismal  failure.  From  the  first  it 
had  been  regrarded  as  but  another  of  those  many 
tactless  performances  by  which  the  Stuart  kings 
were  continually  demonstrating  to  the  nation  their 
utter  incapacity  to  level  up  to  the  measure  and  the 
standard  of  their  opportunities  and  responsibilities. 


GATHERING  CI.OUDS.  277 

In  consequence  of  this  agitation  on  March  26th, 
1642,  Lord  Baltimore  was  summoned  to  appear  be- 
fore the  House  of  Lords  to  answer  for  the  alleged 
misconduct  of  his  officers  in  Maryland,  as  if  he  had 
been  conniving  at  the  realization  of  their  schemes, 
and  abetting  them  in  their  lawlessness.  Was  ever 
an  absolute  lord  in  a  more  pitiable  plight  ?  Fight- 
ing Romanism  abroad,  and  at  the  same  time  accused 
of  advancing  its  interests  at  home.  Unhappy  Lord 
Baltimore  !  He  was  between  the  upper  and  the 
nether  mill-stones.  We  have  nothing,  but  the 
most  meagre  details  of  the  inquiry  before  the 
Upper  House.  But  that  the  lords  did  not  take  any 
very  serious  view  of  the  situation  is  evident  from 
the  fact  that,  apparently,  they  took  no  action  beyond 
placing  Baltimore  under  bonds  not  to  leave  the 
kingdom,  his  previous  disability  in  this  respect 
having  been  removed. 

But  if  we  may  judge  of  the  character  and  nature 
of  the  whole  charge  from  one  portion  of  it,  we  shall 
not  be  surprised  at  the  indifference  of  the  lords. 
He  had,  so  it  was  said,  actually  inserted  a  provision 
into  the  laws  of  the  colony,  protecting  the  Virgin 
Mary  from    reproach^ — an   accusation  which  indi- 

^  Ethan  Allen,  Manuscript  book  in  Episcopal  Library,  Balti- 
more, P.  28. 


278  GATHERING   CLOUDS. 

cates  that  his  opponents  were  not  very  familiar 
with  the  teaching  of  Scripture  on  the  subject  of  the 
honor  due  to  our  Blessed  Lord's  mother.  It  is 
painfully  evident  from  this  incident  alone  that  Lord 
Baltimore  was  face  to  face  with  extremely  unreason- 
ing partizan  malice,  and  that  he  would  have  to 
walk  warily  if  he  would  retain  possession  of  his 
proprietary  rights.  Happily  he  could  sa}-  that  the 
troubles  in  Maryland  were  none  of  his  making,  and 
that  he  was  even  then  engaged  in  a  life  and  death 
struggle  with  the  Jesuits  there,  for  the  very  purpose 
of  bringing  about  their  final  and  complete  submis- 
sion to  his  authority. 

Lord  Baltimore's  justification  of  himself  on  this 
occasion  did  not  however  end  his  difficulties,  nor  re- 
move serious  ground  of  apprehension  for  the  future. 
The  political  sky  was  black  with  clouds,  and  he 
had  soon  far  more  urgent  reasons  for  being  anxious 
about  his  tenure  of  Maryland,  than  anything  which 
might  reasonably  be  expected  to  result  from  an  im- 
partial judicial  inquiry.  Events  were  moving  rap- 
idly in  England.  Every  day  the  king  was  becom- 
ing more  unpopular.  Threats  of  civil  war  began 
to  be  heard  on  all  sides.  Finally  it  came,  and  on 
the  twenty  third  of  October,  1642,  the  first  battle 
took  place  in  that  terrible   fratricidal  strife  which 


GATHERING  CLOUDS.  279 

was  to  witness  the  death  of  King  Charles  I  upon 
the  scaffold  by  the  hands  of  the  common  executioner. 

For  some  time  previous  to  that  tragedy  Lord 
Baltimore  could  scarcely  have  had  much  hope  of 
ultimate  tranquility.  But  after  it  had  occurred,  and 
England  had  received  an  object  lesson  in  such  a 
policy  of  '  Thorough  '  as  even  Strafford  had  never 
dreamed  of,  all  hope  must  have  effectually  died  out 
of  his  heart,  for  only  by  King  Charles'  personal 
favor  was  he  Lord  Proprietary  of  Maryland.  The 
royal  favor  itself  had  now  become  a  serious  disad- 
vantage. But  as  a  Roman  Catholic  recipient  of  the 
king's  bounty  he  labored  under  a  more  serious  dis- 
advantage still.  Even  the  likelihood  of  his  being 
involved  in  whatever  hard  fate  threatened  the  un- 
fortunate king  was  not  nearly  so  remote  as  Balti- 
more could  have  wished  it  to  be.  He  had  even 
begun  to  fear  for  his  life.  ^  In  the  new  turn  of 
events  which  was  lifting  up  Cromwell  and  the  saints 
to  supreme  power  in  England  it  was  a  dangerous 
thing  for  a  man  to  be  suspected  of  encouraging 
Romanism.  Better  far  to  be  a  Mohammedan  seek- 
ing proselytes  than  to  be  charged  with  advancing 
the  cause  of  the  dark  idolatries  of  the  modern 
Babylon,  as  all  good  Puritans  held  they  had  Scrip- 

^  The  Calvert  Papers,  No.  i,  P.  220. 


28o  GATHERING   CLOUDS. 

tural  authority  for  so  describing  Rome.  Next  to 
the  work  of  destroying  the  erroneous  opinions  and 
practices  which  had  found  place  in  the  National 
Church  the  Puritans  turned  with  holy  exultation  to 
extirpating  Romanism  out  of  the  land.  Jehu 
destroying  Baal  out  of  Israel  was  their  ideal  saint 
and  governor. 

It  was  thus  becoming  increasingly  evident  that 
the  only  course  which  held  out  for  Lord  Baltimore 
a  bare  prospect  of  safety  was  for  him  to  speedily 
rout  the  Jesuits.  Nothing  must  be  allowed  to 
interfere  with  that  one  grand  object.  Even  his 
relations  to  his  Church  must  be  subservient  to  it. 
He  must  burn  all  his  bridges  behind  him.  To  be 
sure,  even  this  might  prove  of  no  avail,  it  being 
only  a  forlorn  hope  at  the  best.  But  it  was  the 
only  course  which  held  out  any  possible  prospect 
of  success,  and  he  determined  to  follow  it.  Having 
this  in  view,  Baltimore  undertook  the  work  in  a 
way  so  thoroughly  characteristic  and  eminently 
practical  as  could  not  fail  to  compel  the  admi- 
ration of  his  enemies.  Across  the  seas  on  the  New 
England  shore,  where  the  Pilgrim  Fathers  had 
landed,  there  was  rising  a  splendid  commonwealth. 
The  men  of  that  commonwealth  were  in  religious 
faith  one  with   the  party  now  coming  to  the  front 


GATHERING   CLOUDS.  28 1 

in  England — Puritans  every  one  of  them  and  con- 
sistent haters  both  of  prelacy  and  papistry.^  Why 
should  he  not  offer  Maryland  acres  to  some  of  these? 
It  would  propitiate  the  new  power  in  England,  and 
also  bring  into  his  colony  settlers,  who,  with  a  little 
encouragement  from  him,  would  keep  the  Jesuits  in 
order.  Better  soldiers  he  could  never  hope  to  find, 
for  the  Puritan  is  ever  ready  for  war ;  a  member 
he  of  the  true  Church  Militant.  Writing  forthwith 
to  Massachusetts,  he  made  gracious  offers  to  all 
who  would  migrate  to  Maryland,  but  without  suc- 
cess, as  an  entry  in  the  journal  of  Governor  Win- 
throp  under  date   October  thirteenth,  1643,  clearly 

^  The  rise  of  the  Puritans  is  generally  referred  to  the  reign  of 
Queen  Elizabeth  (1558-1603);  but  their  opinions  are  to  be  traced 
back  a  few  years  further.  During  the  reign  of  Edward  VI.,  one 
section  of  Church  reformers  whose  opinions  were  modeled  on 
those  which  obtained  in  Switzerland,  the  name  of  ' '  Sacramen- 
taries,"  and  were  practically  the  founders  of  the  Puritan  move- 
ment. These  disaffected  Churchmen  who  objected  to  the  sign  of 
the  cross  in  baptism,  to  ' '  all  curious  singing  and  playing  at  the 
organs,"  to  copes,  surplices,  saints'  days,  and  the  like  received 
about  the  year  1566,  the  name  of  Puritans  or  Precisians. 

The  Puritan  movement  went  on  as  a  movement  within  the 
Church  for  many  years  ;  it  produced  sects  made  up  of  those  who 
would  not  remain  in  the  Church  except  on  their  own  terms  ;  and 
it  was  placed  supreme  over  the  Church  under  Cromwell.  The 
Puritans  were  Churchmen  who  had  no  idea  of  leaving  the 
Church.  Indeed,  their  leading  men  poured  out  their  wrath 
upon  those  who  separated  from  the  Church  and  stirred  up 
religious  divisions  in  the  country. 


282  GATHERING   CLOUDS. 

shows,  Maryland  at  that  time  having  no  attraction 
for  the  New  Englanders/  The  idea,  however,  once 
conceived  was  never  lost  sight  of,  and  later  on, 
undeterred  by  the  terrors  of  excommunication,  he 
eventually  filled  his  province  with  Puritans,  who  so 
far  as  clearing  it  of  Jesuits  was  concerned,  certainly 
did  not  disappoint  his  expectations. 

To  return,  however,  to  the  point.  About  the 
time  Lord  Baltimore  was  feeling  most  keenly  the 
difficulties  of  his  position  as  proprietary  he  wrote  a 
letter  to  his  brother  in  Maryland  which  is  a  perfect 
revelation  in  itself.  In  this  letter,  which  is  so 
important  that,  lengthy  as  it  is,  I  venture  to  give 
it  almost  in  extenso,  we  can  see  not  only  the 
determination  of  the  Jesuits  to  win  their  cause  at 
all  costs  and  hazards,  but  the  increasing  bitterness 
of  Lord  Baltimore  towards  the  Jesuit  Society 
itself,  and  towards  the  Roman  Church,   of  which 

*Neill,  Founders  of  Maryland,  P.  109.  "The  Lord  Balti- 
more being  owner  of  much  land  near  Virginia,  being  himself  a 
Papist  and  his  brother  Mr.  Calvert,  the  Governor  there,  a  Papist 
also,  but  the  colony  consisting  of  both  Protestant  and  Papist, 
he  wrote  a  letter  to  Captain  Gibbons  of  Boston  and  sent  him  a 
commission  wherein  he  made  a  tender  of  land  in  Maryland  to 
any  of  ours  that  would  transport  themselves  thither  with  free 
liberty  of  religion,  and  all  other  privileges  which  the  place 
affords,  paying  such  annual  rent  as  should  be  agreed  upon,  but 
our  Captain  had  no  mind  to  further  his  desire,  nor  had  any  of 
our  people  temptation  that  way." 


GATHERING   CLOUDS.  283 

it  formed  so  influential  a  part.  He  is  drifting  from 
his  theological  moorings,  and  this  by  the  act  of  the 
Romanists  themselves.  His  words  have  almost 
the  ring  of  one  of  Anther's  fiery  denunciations.  He 
does  not  hesitate  even  to  bring  the  name  of  the 
Pope  into  the  discussion,  and  to  affirm  by  a  refer- 
ence to  contemporary  events  that  there  were  circum- 
stances under  which  opposition  to  him  would 
be  just  and  lawful.  The  letter '  is  written  to  his 
brother  Leonard  Calvert,  and  is  dated,  London, 
23rd  November,  1642.  It  was  written  immediately 
after  one  dated  21st  November,  in  which  he  had 
given  his  brother  sundry  directions  for  the  conduct 
of  his  affairs.  This  one,  written  upon  the  spur  of 
the  moment,  dealt  with  a  matter  of  which,  we 
infer,  he  was  two  days  before  entirely  ignorant. 
"Good  Brother,"  he  begins,  "just  now  I  under- 
stand, that  notwithstanding  my  prohibition  to  the 
contarie,  another  member  of  those  of  the  Hill 
there,^  hath  by  a  slight,  got  aboard  Mr.  Ingle's  ship 
in   the   Downs  to  take  his  passage  for  Maryland 

5  The  Calvert  Papers,  No.  i,  P.  216.  This  letter  was  lost  for 
two  and  a  half  centuries, 

^  The  "  Hill  "  referred  to  was  the  Hill  of  St.  Inigoes,  (evi- 
dently a  corruption  of  St.  Ignatius)  on  which  the  Jesuits  dwelt, 
and  where  they  owned  considerable  property.  Lord  Baltimore 
constantly  refers  to  the  Jesuits  in  this  contemptuous  way. 


284  GATHERING  CLOUDS. 

which  for  divers  respects  I  have  reason  to  resent  as 
a  high  affront  nnto  me.  .  .  .  This  gentleman,  the 
bearer  hereof,  Mr.  Territt,  will  acquaint  you  more 
particularly  with  my  mind  herein,  and  with  the 
opinion  and  sense  which  divers  pious  and  learned 
men  here  have  to  this  odious  and  impudent  injury 
offered  unto  me,  and  with  what  is  lawful  and  most 
necessary  to  be  done  in  it,  as  well  for  the  vindica- 
tion of  my  honor  as  in  time  to  prevent  a  growing 
mischief  upon  me,  unto  whom  wherefore  I  pray 
give  credit.  Mr.  Gilmet  will,  I  know,  concur  in 
opinion  with  him,  for  upon  divers  consults  had 
here  (  before  he  went )  he  was  well  satisfied  what 
might  and  ought  to  be  done  upon  such  an  occasion. 
In  case  the  man  above  mentioned  who,  goes  thither 
in  contempt  of  my  prohibition,  should  be  disposed 
of  in  some  place  out  of  my  province  before  you  can 
lay  hold  of  him  ;  for  they  are  so  full  of  shifts  and 
devices  as  I  believe  they  may  perhaps  send  him  to 
Potomac  Town,  thinking  by  that  means  to  a^'oid 
your  power  of  sending  him  back  into  these  parts  ; 
and  yet  the  affront  to  me  remain,  and  the  danger 
of  prejudice  also  be  the  same,  for  (whatsoever  you 
may  conceive  of  them  who  have  no  reason  upon 
my  knowledge  to  love  them  very  much  if  you 
knew  as  much  as  I   do  concerning  their  speeches 


GATHERING   CLOUDS.  285 

and  actions  here  towards  you )  I  am  ( upon  very 
good  reasons )  satisfied  in  my  judgment  that  they 
do  design  my  destruction  ;  and  I  have  too  good 
cause  to  suspect  that  if  they  cannot  make  or  main- 
tain a  party  b}^  degrees  among  the  English  to  bring 
their  ends  about,  they  will  endeavor  to  do  it  by  the 
Indians,  by  arming  them  against  all  those  that 
shall  oppose  them,  and  all  under  pretence  of  God's 
honor  and  the  propagation  of  the  Christian  faith, 
which  shall  be  the  mask  and  vizard  to  hide  their 
other  designs  withal.  If  all  things  that  clergymen 
should  do  upon  these  pretences  should  be  accounted 
just,  and  to  proceed  from  God,  laymen  were  the 
basest  slaves  and  most  wretched  creatures  upon  the 
earth.  And  if  the  greatest  saint  upon  earth  should 
intrude  himself  into  my  house  against  my  will,  and 
in  despite  of  me  with  the  intention  to  save  the 
souls  of  all  my  family,  but  withal  give  me  just 
cause  to  suspect  that  he  likewise  designs  my  tem- 
poral destruction,  or  that  being  already  in  my 
house  doth  actually  practice  it,  although  withal 
he  does  perhaps  many  spiritual  goods,  yet  certainly 
I  may  and  ought  to  preser\^e  myself  by  the  expul- 
sion of  such  an  enemy,  and  by  providing  others  to 
perform  the  spiritual  good  he  did,  who  shall  not 
have  any  intention  of  mischief  towards  me,  for  the 


286  GATHERING   CLOUDS. 

law  of  nature  teacheth  this,  that  it  is  lawful  for 
every  man,  in  his  own  just  defence,  vim  vi  repellere, 
those  that  will  be  impudent  must  be  impudently 
dealt  withal.  In  case,  I  say,  that  the  party  above 
mentioned  shoidd  escape  your  hands  by  the  means 
aforesaid,  ( which  by  all  means  prevent  if  possibly 
you  can )  then  I  pray  do  not  fail  to  send  Mr- 
Copley  away  from  thence  by  the  next  shipping  to 
those  parts." 

"The  Princes  of  Italy  who  are  now  up  in  arms 
against  the  Pope,  ( although  they  be  Roman  Cath- 
olics )  do  not  make  any  scruple  of  conscience  by 
force  of  arms  to  vindicate  the  injury  which  they 
conceive  he  would  have  done  unto  the  Duke  of 
Parma :  by  wresting  a  brave  palace,  not  far  from 
Rome,  called  Capreroly,  with  a  little  territory  about 
it,  from  the  said  Duke  for  one  of  the  Pope's 
nephews :  nor  do  they  much  esteem  his  excom- 
munications or  Bulls  in  that  business  for  they 
believe  them  to  be  unjustly  grounded,  and  there- 
fore of  no  validity ;  although  they  continue, 
notwithstanding,  Roman  Catholics,  and  these  are 
the  Duke  of  Florence,  the  State  of  Venice,  the 
Duke  of  Parma  and  the  Duke  of  IModena  Reggio  : 
who  are  now  joined  in  league  and  have  an  anu}-  of 
about    forty  thousand  men  raised  up  against  the 


GATHERING   CLOUDS.  287 

Pope,  and  he  near  as  many  against  them  upon  the 
quarrel  above  mentioned,  in  so  much  as  it  is 
generally  conceived  here  that  Rome  is  sacked  by 
this  time,  or  else  that  the  Pope  hath  given  full 
satisfaction  to  the  aforesaid  Princes,  for  he  is 
thought  too  weak  for  them." 

"  In  fine  if  you  do  not  with  a  constant  resolution 
and  faithful  affection  to  me,  execute  what  I  have 
here  directed,  (whatsoever  inconvenience  may  come 
of  it)  and  according  to  what  you  shall  understand 
to  be  my  mind  herein  more  particularly  by  word 
of  mouth  from  the  said  Mr.  Territt,  you  will,  as  I 
said,  betray  me  to  the  greatest  dishonor  and  preju- 
dice that  ever  one  brother  did  another.  ...  I  under- 
stand that  notwithstanding  my  prohibition  the  last 
year  you  did  pass  grants  under  my  seal  here  to 
those  of  the  Hill  of  St.  Inigoes,  and  other  lands  at 
St.  Mary's,  and  also  of  one  hundred  acres  of  land 
at  Pascataway,  some  of  which  as  I  am  informed 
you  conceived  in  justice  due  unto  them,  and  there- 
fore thought  yourself  obliged  to  grant  them, 
although  it  were  contrary  to  my  directions,  which 
to  me  seems  very  strange,  for  certainly  I  have 
power  to  revoke  any  authority  I  have  given  you 
there  either  in  whole  or  in  part,  and  if  I  had 
thought  fit  to  have  totally  revoked  your  power  of 


288  GATHERING   CLOUDS. 

granting  any  lands  there  at  all  in  my  name,  cer- 
tainly no  man  that  is  disinterested  could  think  that 
you  were  bound  nevertheless  in  conscience  to 
usurp  such  an  authority  against  my  will,  because 
in  justice  divers  planters  ought  to  have  grants  from 
me  ;  for  when  I  have  revoked  the  power  I  gave 
you  for  that  purpose  any  man  else  may  as  well  as 
you  undertake  to  pass  grants  in  my  name,  and  have 
as  much  obligation  also  in  conscience  to  do  it.  I 
leave  it  to  you  to  judge  when  I  did  give  directions 
to  you  not  to  grant  any  more  lands  to  those  of  the 
Hill  there  upon  any  pretence  whatsoever,  I  did  so 
far  as  concerned  them  revoke  that  power  I  formerly 
gave  you  of  granting  lands  there,  and  it  was  a  great 
breach  of  trust  in  you  to  do  the  contrary.  And  for 
aught  you  know  some  accident  might  have  hap- 
pened here  that  was  no  injustice  in  me,  to  have 
refused  them  grants  of  any  land  at  all,  and  that  by 
reason  of  some  act  of  this  state  it  might  have 
endangered  my  life  and  fortune  to  have  permitted 
them  to  have  any  grants  at  all  which  I  do  not  ( I 
assure )  mention  without  good  ground.  I  shall 
earnestly  therefore  desire  you  to  be  more  obser\'ant 
hereafter  of  my  directions,  and  not  expect  that  I 
should  satisfy  your  judgment  by  acquainting  you 
still  with   my  reasons  why  I  direct  anything ;  for 


GATHERING   CLOUDS.  289 

then  my  power  there  were  no  more  than  any  man's 
else,  who  may  with  reasons  persuade  you  to  do  or 
forbear  anything  as  well  as  I.  And  I  do  once 
strictly  require  you  not  to  suffer  any  grants  of  any 
lands  for  the  future  to  pass  my  seal  here  to  any 
member  of  the  Hill  there,  nor  to  any  other  person 
in  trust  for  them  upon  any  pretence  or  claim  what- 
soever without  especial  warrant  under  my  hand  and 
seal,  to  be  hereafter  obtained  from  me  for  that  pur- 
pose.    So  I  rest. 

Your  most  affectionate  loving  brother, 

lyondon,  23d  November,  1642." 

In  a  postscript  he  adds  : 

"  The  Masters  here  of  those  of  the  Hill  there 
did  divers  ways  importune  me  to  permit  some  of 
theirs  to  go  this  year  thither,  insomuch  as  they 
have,  God  forgive  them  for  it,  caused  a  bitter  falling 
out  between  my  sister  Peasely  and  me,  and  some 
discontentment  also  betw^een  me  and  her  husband 
about  it,  because  I  would  not  by  any  means  give 
way  to  the  going  of  any  of  the  aforesaid  persons." 

It  was  a  severe  letter.  But  an  adequate  expla- 
nation of  its  severity  is  found  in  the  not  unreasona- 
ble alarm  which  Lord  Baltimore  now  felt.  Leonard 
knew  nothing  of  the  trial  before  the  peers — the  "act 


290  GATHERING   CLOUDS. 

of  this  state,"  as  it  is  probably  described  in  this 
letter — neither  did  he  know  that  the  foundations 
of  his  brother's  rule  in  Maryland  were  beginning  to 
tremble.  Here,  too,  was  the  explanation  of  Lord 
Baltimore's  subsequent  refusal  to  complete  the  pro- 
posed sale  of  the  Church  at  St.  Mary's,  when  the 
governor  and  the  secretary  had  settled  the  prelimi- 
naries." It  was  no  time  to  be  receiving  "garments, 
olive  yards  and  vineyards,  and  sheep  and  oxen  and 
men-servants  and  maid-servants." 

When  Lord  Baltimore's  letter  had  reached  its 
destination,  and  Leonard  Calvert  had  read  it,  and 
Mr.  Territt  and  Mr.  Gilmett  had  explained  its 
obscure  hints,  and  by  word  of  mouth  had  told  the 
governor  many  things  which  his  brother  would  not 
venture  to  commit  to  paper,  Leonard  Calvert  must 
have  been  as  thoroughly  alarmed  as  was  the  pro- 
prietary himself.  Indeed,  so  serious  was  the  situa- 
tion, and  so  wholly  inexperienced  did  he  feel 
himself  to  be  in  meeting  the  emergency,  that  his 
resolution  was  quickly  taken.  He  w^ould  himself 
leave  for  a  visit  to  England,  and  there  take  counsel 
with  his  brother  in  person.  Accordingly  as  soon 
as  possible  after  the  receipt  of  this  letter  Leon- 
,ard  Calvert  was  on  his  way  to  England.     The  time 

^Streeter,  Md.  His.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  9,  P.  183. 


GATHERING   CLOUDS.  291 

of  his  departure  was  not  well  chosen,  the  province 
never  having  stood  in  greater  need  of  a  responsible 
and  competent  head  than  at  this  very  time.  But 
he  was  between  the  Scylla  of  remaining,  without 
knowing  how  his  brother  wanted  him  to  act  under 
the  new  developments  in  England,  and  the  Char>^b- 
dis  of  going  with  the  prospect  of  anarchy  while  he 
was  away.  He  went,  however,  and  arrived  in  Eng- 
land in  the  very  midst  of  the  excitement  of  those 
troublous  times. 

Meanwhile  the  Puritan  power,  unappreciated  at 
its  full  strength  by  either  brother,  was  rapidly 
rising,  before  which  the  Jesuits  were  to  be  swept 
away  as  easily  as  dry  leaves  gathered  in  the  rocky 
bed  of  a  mountain  stream  are  swept  away  when  the 
floods  in  tempestuous  torrents  pour  down  into  the 
valley.  Leonard  Calvert  might  have  learned  a 
useful  lesson  from  those  sudden  thunder  storms  of 
whose  terrific  grandeur  he  had  often  been  an  inter- 
ested spectator  from  the  bluff  overlooking  St. 
Mary's  River,  whereon  their  city  was  built.  Cap- 
tain John  Smith  wrote  concerning  those  storms  : 
^'  The  like  thunder  and  lightning  to  purify  the  air 
I  have  seldom  either  seen  or  heard  in  Europe."  ^ 
A    characteristic   of  them   is  the   timely  warning 

^  Smith,  History  of  Virginia,  Vol.  I,  P.  114. 


292  GATHERING   CLOUDS. 

they  give.  The  sky  is  clear  and  bright,  not  a 
cloud  in  sight.  Suddenly  just  above  the  horizon  a 
small  dark  patch  is  visible  in  the  sky.  Presently 
clouds  in  great  volumes  roll  and  surge  upwards, 
banking  themselves  in  rank  above  rank  until  they 
present  a  magnificent  spectacle.  And  still  all  is  calm. 
Not  a  leaf  is  turned  by  the  wind,  not  a  drop  of  rain 
has  fallen.  Only  the  distant  roll  of  thunder,  com- 
ing nearer  and  nearer,  and  the  banking  clouds 
growing  blacker  and  blacker,  tell  of  the  coming 
tempest,  and  warn  the  traveler  to  hasten  on  his  way, 
or  seek  shelter  from  the  blast.  Now  it  is  at  hand. 
Against  the  darkened  sky  the  leaves  of  the  forest 
trees  are  gleaming  white,  dust  whirls  about,  and 
great  branches  are  being  torn  off  and  flung  con- 
temptuously aside.  The  lightning  flashes  vividly 
against  the  inky  blackness  of  the  sky,  as  if  it  would 
rend  the  very  heavens  in  twain.  Echoing  crashes 
of  heavy  thunder  are  now^  following  each  other  in 
quick  succession.  The  storm  at  length  is  at  its 
height.  The  landscape  is  deluged  with  sheets  of 
of  rain,  and  every  water  course  is  swollen  high  w^itli 
a  solid  torrent  which  carries  all  obstacles  before  it. 
An  hour  afterwards  all  is  calm  and  peaceful  again. 
The  sun  shines  once  more,  and  the  sky  glows  with 
infinite  gradations  of  tint  and  tone. 


GATHERING   CLOUDS.  293 

In  the  ecclesiastical  sky  there  were  signs  of  just 
such  a  coming  storm,  when  Leonard  Calvert  sailed 
away  from  England.  Already  black  clouds  were 
sweeping  across  the  horizon,  and  the  sounds  of 
thunder  heard.  An  experienced  eye  could  now 
have  told  Lord  Baltimore  that  if  he  would  retain 
his  hold  on  Maryland  he  would  be  obliged  to  resort 
to  more  anti-Roman  measures  than  anything 
he  had  yet  attempted  or  even  thought  of.  Indeed 
the  time  was  soon  to  come  when  he  would  have  to 
pose  as  a  champion  of  Puritans,  who  ridiculed  his 
pretensions  to  absolute  lordship  and  royal  jurisdic- 
tion, who  scoffed  at  his  religion,  and,  in  the  very 
colony  that  he  had  founded,  were  to  disfranchise  his 
co-religionists,  and  to  seize  the  reins  of  government 
for  themselves. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE  STORM. 

1644. 

Deep  swelling  gusts 
And  sultry  stillness  take  the  rule  by  turns  ; 
Whilst  o'er  our  heads  the  black  and  heavy  clouds 
Roll  slowly  on. 

— Joanna  Baii^IvIE. 

While  Leonard  Calvert  was  in  England  the 
ecclesiastical  storm  broke  over  St.  Mary's,  its 
breaking  being  precipitated  by  the  news  from 
England  of  the  remarkable  successes  of  the  Parlia- 
mentar}^  forces.  The  Protestants  saw  that  the  hour 
of  deliverance  had  come.  They  would  now  look 
to  it  that  Rome's  dominion  w^as  at  an  end.  In 
England  the  Jesuits  lay  under  a  ban,  and  it  was 
intolerable  that  in  an  English  colony,  and  in 
defiance  of  English  law,  they  should  be  permitted 
to  conduct  themselves  as  they  had  been  doing. 
Was  it  for  this  that  the  Mar^dand  adventurers  had 
left  kinsfolk  and  friends?  For  this  that  their 
fathers  had  gone  through  the  fires  of  Smithfield  ? 
Had   the   yoke   of   Rome   been   broken    off   their 


THE   STORM.  295 

shoulders  in  England,  and  not  wherever  England's 
flag  waved  ?  Degenerate  sons  of  mighty  sires  were 
they,  and  unworthy  of  the  traditions  of  their  race, 
if  they  calmly  bore  this  wrong  any  longer. 

Yet  without  a  leader  protestant  resentment  might 
have  smoldered  for  a  considerable  period  before 
bursting  out  into  flame.  But  that  leader  was  at 
hand.  Baltimore's  arbitrary  proceedings  ten  years 
before  were  now  to  bear  their  unwholesome  fruit. 
Ever  since  the  battle  or  the  Pocomoke,  when  Bal- 
timore had  seized  Clayborne's  property  on  Kent 
Island,  Clayborne  had  been  biding  his  time.  At 
last  it  had  come,  and  he  could  now  take  sweet 
vengeance  upon  his  enemy.  Anticipating  by  some 
weeks  the  ultimate  downfall  of  the  king  he  imme- 
diately put  himself  at  the  head  of  the  disaffected 
among  the  colonists,  and  with  the  aid  of  one 
Richard  Ingle,  the  captain  of  a  ship  engaged  in 
trade  with  the  province,  he  made  war  on  his  ancient 
foe.  Instantly  Maryland  affairs  were  in  the  utmiost 
confusion.  The  principal  officers  of  the  govern- 
ment were  hopelessly  at  variance.  Ingle,  proclaimed 
a  traitor  to  his  Majesty,  his  vessel  seized,  and  an 
attempt  made,  though  unsuccessful,  to  accomplish 
his  arrest,  was  more  embittered  than  ever.  Mean- 
while the  surrounding  Indians,  taking  advantage  of 


296  THE   STORM. 

the  dissensions  among  the  settlers,  were  becoming 
alarmingly  hostile/  Altogether  the  condition  of 
the  province  was  exceedingly  critical.  In  the 
midst  of  the  trouble  Leonard  Calvert  arrived  from 
England.  But  he  w^as  powerless  to  bring  order 
out  of  chaos,  and  before  the  end  of  the  year — 1644. — 
Clayborne  had  the  supreme  satisfaction  of  coming 
into  possession  of  Kent  Island.  This  was,  however, 
only  the  beginning  of  his  successes.  He  looked 
forward  to  greater  achievements.  In  the  following 
spring  St.  Mary's  was  attacked  by  the  Protestants, 
whose  discontent  Clayborne  had  focused?  With- 
out a  struggle  the  city  was  captured,  and  Lord 
Baltimore's  authority  in  Maryland  ceased.  On  its 
ruins  Clayborne  established  his  own.  In  all  this, 
and  much  more  in  events  of  far  greater  moment 
that  followed  this,  as  it  is  very  easy  to  see,  Clay- 
borne had  a  model  be}'ond  the  seas.  In  the  person 
of  the  Lord  Protector  the  late  Secretary  of  Virginia 
had  found  both  his  exemplar  and  his  strongest 
encouragement  to  persevere. 

The  dow^nfall  of  the  proprietary  government 
caused  a  panic  among  the  Jesuits.  The  more  pru- 
dent sought  safety  in  flight,  recognising  that  they 

^  Streeter,  Maryland  Two  Hundred  Years  Ago,  P.  33  and  34. 


THE   STORM.  297 

had  fallen  upon  evil  times.  Even  the  governor 
fled  the  province.  The  priests,  who  were  naturally 
regarded  as  the  head  and  front  of  the  offending, 
before  they  could  follow  the  governor's  example, 
were  seized  and  confined,  to  be  sent  in  chains  to 
England  at  the  first  opportunity.  Their  people 
were  dealt  with  less  harshly.  But  some  among 
them  were  banished,  while  others  were  heavily 
fined.  Probably  those  who  were  thus  treated  had 
been  more  or  less  prominently  identified  with  the 
performances  of  Thomas  Copley.  But  if  we  may 
depend  upon  the  statements  of  the  Jesuit  report 
made  in  1670 — just  about  a  quarter  of  a  cen- 
tury later — we  shall  see  that  in  1646  there  were 
Roman  Catholics  in  Maryland  who,  so  far  from 
feeling  it  necessary  to  hide  themselves  in  dens  and 
caves  of  the  earth,  were  not  afraid  to  follow  a  cus- 
tom they  had  established  when  they  were  in  power, 
of  honoring  the  night  of  July  31st — the  festival  of 
St.  Ignatius — with  a  salute  of  cannon.  "Mindful" 
runs  the  record,  "  of  the  solemn  custom,  the  anni- 
versary of  the  holy  father  being  ended,  they  wished 
the  night  also  consecrated  to  the  honor  of  the  same 
by  continual  discharge  of  artillery."  Accordingly 
they  kept  up  the  cannonade  throughout  the  whole 
night.     At  the  time  there  happened  to  be  in  the 


298  THE   STORM. 

neighborhood  "  certain  soldiers,  unjust  phmderers, 
Knglishmen  indeed  by  birth,  of  the  heterodox  faith; 
*  *  *  but  now  aroused  by  the  nocturnal  report 
of  the  cannon,  on  the  day  after,  that  is  on  the  first 
of  April,  rush  upon  us  with  arms,  break  into  the 
homes  of  the  Catholics  and  plunder  w^iatever  there 
is  of  arms  or  powder-"  ^  The  continuous  firing  of 
cannon  during  the  night,  while  the  enemy's  soldiers 
were  in  the  neighborhood,  implies  that  there  had 
been  no  attempt  to  drive  out,  or  even  to  intimidate, 
all  the  Roman  Catholics.  It  was  an  attack  not  on 
them  but  on  the  Jesuit  priests.  When  order  was 
restored  Clayborne  was  undisputed  master  of  the 
land. 

Thus,  as  so  often  elsewdiere,  the  Jesuits  had  proved 
to  be  troublers  of  the  peace  of  the  community 
which  had  given  them  shelter.  Rule  or  ruin  seems 
ever  to  be  the   only  alternative   of  their  presence. 

'^  In  Plantagenet's  New  Albion,  a  pamphlet  published  in  i6;8, 
Clayborne's  part  in  the  movement,  and  also  its  religious  char- 
acter is  seen.  "  I  went  "  says  the  author,  "  to  Chicacoen  avoid- 
ing Maryland,  for  then  it  was  in  war  both  with  the  Susquehan- 
nocks,  and  all  the  Eastern  Bay  Indians,  and  a  civil  war  between 
some  revolters,  Protestants,  assisted  by  fifty  plundered  Virgin- 
ians, by  whom  Mr.  Leonard  Calvert  was  taken  prisoner  and  ex- 
pelled ;  and  the  Isle  of  Kent  also  taken  from  him  by  Captain 
CI ayboume  of  Virginia,"  Streeter,  Mary/aud,  Tiuo  Hundred 
Years  Ago,   P.  34. 


THE  STORM.  299 

Already  lying  under  the  grave  displeasure  of  the 
lord  proprietary  they  now  suffered  well  merited 
chastisement  at  the  hands  of  the  angry  colonists, 
who  had  determined  that  a  government  dominated 
by  them  should  come  to  an  end.  Such  a  condition 
of  affairs  had  of  course  from  the  beginning  been  an 
anomaly.  Moreover  it  had  been  flagrant  lawless- 
ness, existing  as  it  did  in  the  face  of  the  lord  pro- 
prietary's initial  injunctions^  and  his  oft  repeated 
protests,  to  say  nothing  of  the  charter  to  which 
jMaryland  owed  her  existence,  and  the  statute  law 
of  England  herself.  Now,  however,  the  day  of 
retribution  had  come.  But  as  frequently  happens 
under  similar  circumstances  the  most  guilty  escape. 
Emphatically  was  this  the  case  in  the  present 
instance.  Thomas  Copley,  the  fomenter  of  strife 
and  dissension,  without  whose  help  even  Clay- 
borne's  opposition  would  have  been  as  harmless  as 
an  arrow  against  an  iron-clad  vessel,  contrived  to 
make  good  his  escape  from  personal  injury, 
although  he  did  not  escape  from  pecuniary  loss, 
his  home  at  Potopaco  being  gutted.^  On  the  other 
hand,  Father  White,  the  faithful  missionary, 
against  whom  no  evil  report  lay,  was  sent  to  Eng- 

^Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.,  No.  7,  Pp.  94  and  95. 
•^Neill,  Founders  of  Maryland,  P.  103. 


300 


THE    STORM. 


land  in  irons,  there  to  be  tried  and  condemned  as  a 
felon  to  suffer  imprisonment  for  violating  the  laws- 
concerning  popish  missionary  priests.  Father 
White's  fate  was  a  hard  one,  all  the  harder  because 
so  undeserved  ;  but  it  gained  for  him,  we  may  be 
sure,  the  deepest  sympathy  of  the  lord  proprietary-, 
whose  life-long  friend  he  had  been,  as  he  had  been 
also  the  friend  of  his  father  before  him.  On  July 
4th,  1646,  he  was  found  guilty  of  teaching  doctrines 
contrary  to  the  laws  of  England.  Unfortunately, 
with  his  own  misfortunes  falling  fast  upon  him., 
Lord  Baltimore  was  powerless  to  save  the  good 
father  from  that  confinement  in  the  penitentiary 
to  which  a  rigorous  obedience  to  the  law  now  rele- 
gated him.  His  imprisonment  was  not,  however, 
of  long  duration.  In  Januar}'  7th  1648  the  House 
of  Commons  granted  his  release  from  Newgate.^ 

Yet  observe  here  what  a  clear  light  is  thrown  by 
this  incident  upon  the  contention  that  Mar^dand 
was  given  to  Lord  Baltimore  as  a  refuge  for  perse- 
cuted Roman  Catholics.  Granting  this  claim, 
never  did  a  Christian  government  behave  in  a 
more  tyrannical,  arbitrary  and  iniquitous  fashion 
than  did  the  English  government  towards  Father 

5  Ibid,  P.  104. 


THE   STORM.  301 

White  and  his  fellow  sufferers.  With  Gallio-like 
indifference  it  had  allowed  an  apostolic  mis- 
sionary to  be  ruthlessly  torn  from  his  people,  and 
had  then  both  accepted  full  responsibility  for  this 
act,  and  had  proceeded  further  to  punish  him  by 
long  imprisonment  for  exercising  a  ministry,  which, 
though  prohibited  by  law  from  exercising  in  Eng- 
land, yet  by  its  own  authority  and  consent,  he  had 
full  liberty  to  exercise  in  Maryland.  Surely  to 
have  inveigled  Roman  Catholics  to  Maryland  by 
promises  of  full  toleration  of  their  opinions,  and 
then  to  imprison  them  for  accepting  the  offers  made 
them,  was  the  very  refinement  of  cruelty,  beside 
which  the  giving  to  children  a  stone  when  they 
have  asked  of  us  bread  is  mercifulness  itself.  Can 
anyone  really  believe  that  the  English  government 
had  ever  regarded  Maryland  as  a  refuge  for 
Romanists?  Does  not  Father  White's  own  con- 
duct, and  that  of  his  brother  ecclesiastics,  in  first 
traveling  to  Maryland  under  assumed  names,  and 
then,  as  long  as  it  was  possible  to  do  so,  hiding 
their  priestly  status  under  the  style  and  title  of  lay- 
men, altogether  discredit  that  contention.  Men 
protected  by  law  have  no  need  to  act  in  that  v/ay. 
That  the  Jesuits  did  so  act  shows  that  they  were 
fully  conscious  that  they  were  lawbreakers  and  that 


302  THE   STORM. 

even  in  ^Maryland  tliey  preached  their  doctrines  at 
their  peril.  Father  White  and  his  colleagues  at 
any  rate  did  not  foresee  the  rise  and  extraordinary 
growth  of  the  Calvert  cult  and  the  legendary  origin 
of  Maryland. 

Lord  Baltimore  had  no  time  to  spend  in  profit- 
less regrets.  There  was  no  predicting  to  what  the 
jMaryland  insurrection  might  lead.  For  a  time  it 
was  of  course  only  too  evident  that  he  had  lost  his 
province.  It  was  even  an  unsolved  problem 
whether  he  would  ever  recover  possession  of  it. 
The  indications  were  so  far  from  favorable  that 
Lord  Baltimore  himself  gave  up  all  hope.  Writing 
to  his  brother  he  bade  him  gather  together  the 
wreck  of  his  private  property,  and  then  abandon  his 
ill-starred  enterprise.  That  ill  success  which  had 
dogged  his  father's  commercial  undertakings  seemed 
to  be  following  him  also.  He  was  utterly  in 
despair.  There  was  much  to  justify  a  pessimistic 
view.  Instead  of  becoming  brighter,  the  fortunes 
of  King  Charles — with  which  his  own  were  so 
indissolubly  bound  up — were  daily  becoming  more 
desperate.  The  royal  cause  was  plainly  doomed. 
And  when,  on  the  twelfth  of  June  following,  the 
battle  of  Naseby  was  fought  which  resulted  in  the 
capture  of   the  king  by   the  Parliamentary  forces. 


THE   STORM.  303 

and  the  coming  into  power  of  Oliver  Cromwell,  as 
Lord  Protector  of  England,  Baltimore's  fate-  seemed 
doomed  also.  Everything  was  against  him.  In 
Maryland  the  threatened  invasion  of  the  Indians 
had  taken  place  and  they  were  now  making  war 
upon  his  people.^  At  home  Parliament  had  just 
handed  over  the  whole  care  of  the  colonies,  his  own 
included,  to  the  Earl  of  Warwick.  Evidently  the 
only  thing  left  for  him  to  do  was  to  quickly  save 
what  he  could  out  of  the  wreck,  and  abandon  his 
ill-starred  enterprise — hence  his  despairing  letter  to 
his  brother. 

Meanwhile,  one  little  ray  of  sunshine  shot  across 
the  darkened  sky.  Although  affairs  were  so  hope- 
lessly forlorn  there  came  just  one  cheering  message 
from  Maryland.  Paying  no  attention  to  the  letter 
in  which  Cecil ius  had  ordered  him  to  gather 
together  what  he  could  and  abandon  the  lost 
cause,  Leonard  had  struck  a  vigorous  blow  for  his 
brother's  province,  which  had  proved  eminently 
successful.  By  the  help  of  the  Virginians  he  had 
come  again  into  possession  of  St.  Mar^^'s,  and  this 
without  the  shedding  of  blood!  After  two  years 
experience  of  other  rulers  the  colonists  were  glad 
to  come  again  under  the  rule  of  the  Calverts. 

^  Sparks,  P.  215. 


304  THE   STORM. 

In  this  there  was  nothing  strange  or  unexpected. 
By  the  banishment  of  the  Jesnits,  and  the  overthrow 
of  Roman  influence,  the  colonists  had  accomplished 
their  aims.  With  the  exception  of  Clayborne  and 
Ingle  none  of  Baltimore's  enemies  were  animated 
by  any  motives  of  private  hatred  and  vengeance 
against  him  personally.  It  is  important  to  bear 
this  fact  in  mind  because  it  explains  not  only  the 
sudden  collapse  of  this  rebellion,  but  of  a  more 
serious  one  later  on.  The  colonists'  rebellion  was 
over  when  Romanism  was  crushed.  Clayborne's 
hostility  was  life-long,  and  only  to  be  satiated  by 
the  death  or  total  discomfiture  of  Lord  Baltimore 
himself.  Hence  it  was  that  with  the  defeat  of  the 
priests  the  whole  population  came  again  under 
Baltimore's  rule.  For  their  quarrel  was  with  Rome, 
and  with  Rome  only.  They  doubtless  even  felt 
that  they  were  helping  the  proprietary  when  the}- 
were  fighting  the  Jesuits,  and  they  no  doubt  con- 
gratulated themselves  that  what  he  had  ineffectually 
tried  to  do  by  legislation.  Conditions  of  Plantation, 
and  in  other  ways,  they  had  in  a  few  hours  achieved 
for  him.^  With  Cla^'borne's  undying  hostility  the}- 
had  little  or  no  sympathy.     But  alas  !  there  was  no 

'  Episcopalians  up  to  the  year  1650  were  faithful  supporters 
of  Lord  Baltimore's  proprietary  claims.  Streeter,  Mmy/afid 
Two  Hundred  Years  Ago,  P  39. 


THE   STORM.  305 

sunshine  in  England.  Events  were  running  on 
rapidly  to  that  dark  day  when  King  Charles  passed 
to  the  scaffold  as  an  enemy  of  his  country. 

Shortly  after  the  province  came  back  again  into 
the  hands  of  its  rightful  lord  the  young  governor's 
course  was  run.  At  the  early  age  of  forty-one  he 
passed  away,  on  the  9th  of  June  1647.  ^^  the 
main  he  had  been  faithful  to  his  brother's  interests, 
and  there  was  probably  none  who  did  not  sorrow 
over  his  untimely  death.  But  it  would  be  a  misuse 
of  language  to  write  of  him  as  "a  great  and  good 
man.^  "  Perhaps  it  would  be  equally  unfair  to  think 
of  him  as  weak  and  incompetent.  Yet  his  own 
relative,  George  Evelyn,  the  commander  of  Kent 
Island,  asked  of  him  contemptuously  "  Who  was 
his  grandfather,  but  a  grazier  ?  What  was  his 
father  ?  What  was  Lord  Calvert  himself  at  school, 
but  a  dunce  and  a  blockhead.^  "  Great  men  to  be 
sure  have  come  forth  with  such  reputations  behind 
them,  but  it  must  be  admitted  that  it  is  rather  an 
unpromising  foundation  on  which  to  raise  a  splen- 
did name  and  reputation.  Leonard  Calvert  did 
his  best,  and  according  to  his  ability  he  served  both 
his  brother  and  Maryland  well.     But  he  was  not  a 

^  Davis,  The  Day  Sta7\  P.  174. 
^  Streeter,  Evelyn,  P.  6. 


3o6  THE   STORM. 

brilliant  success  as  a  governor.  Not  only  did  he 
take  his  religion  from  Rome  but  unfortunately  he 
took  his  politics  also.  He  was  simply  the  tool  of  the 
Jesuits,  and  being  such  it  was  natural  that  they  had 
no  great  opinion  of  him.  From  his  brother's 
account  Leonard  thought  more  highly  of  them 
than  they  did  of  him.^"  So  it  cam>e  about  that,  in 
the  contest  between  his  brother  and  the  Jesuits,  he 
could  not  always  be  relied  upon  to  stand  by  his 
brother's  orders.  This  was  of  course  a  serious 
draw  back.  An  ideal  governor  would  have  been 
absolutely  independent  in  his  political  opinions. 
At  any  rate  he  would  have  carried  out  his  patron's 
instructions,  whatever  his  own  religious  convictions 
might  have  been,  and  this  he  had  not  done. 

Will  it  however  be  believed  that  he  lies  in  a 
nameless  grave  ?  Of  his  sepulchre,  like  that  of 
Moses,  no  man  knows  unto  this  day.  A  few  years 
ago  the  State  of  Maryland  erected  a  monument  to 
his  memory,  setting  it  up  on  the  site  of  the  future 
city  of  St.  Mary's,  where  he  made  his  agreement 
with  the  Yaocomico  Indians  for  the  purchase  of 
their  lands. 

On  each  side  of  the  square  base  inscriptions  run 
as  follows : 

^^  Calvert  Papers,  No.  /,  P.  217. 


THE   STORM.  2)^7 

I,eonard  Calvert, 

second  son  of 

r  Qeorge  Calvert, 

^First  ^aron  of  Baltimore, 

and 

AtiJie  his  veife. 

I^ed  the  first  colonists  to  Maryland 

November  22,  1633 — March  3,  1634. 

Founded  St.  Marj-'s 

March  27,  1634. 

Died 

June  9,  1647. 

by  his 

-  Wisdom,  Justice  and  Fidelity 

■  he  fostered 

the  infancy  of  the  colony, 

•  guided  it  through  great  perils 

and  dying  left  it  at  peace. 

'   The  descendants  and  sitccessors 

of  the  men  he  governed, 

here  record 

their  grateful  recognition 

of 

his  virtues. 

November— MDCCCXC. 


To 

the  memory  of 

Ivcouard  Calvert, 

-.   First  Governor  of  Maryland, 

this  monument  is  erected 

by 
The  State  of  Maryland. 

Erected 

on  the  site  of  the 

Old  Mulberry  Tree 

under  which  the 

First  Colonists  of  Maryland 

assembled 

to  establish  a  government, 

where  the  persecuted  and  oppressed  of 

every  creed  and  of  every  clime  might 

repose   in    peace    and   security,    adore 

their    common    God,    and    enjoy    the 

priceless  blessings  of 

Civil  and  Religious  I^iberty. 


3o8  THE   vSTORM. 

The  description  of  Leonard  on  this  stone  is  on  a 
par  with  epitaphs  generally,  and  only  serves  to 
show  how  little  descriptions  of  the  kind  can  be 
relied  upon,  almost  justifying  Byron's  sneer : 
"  Never  believe  an  epitaph."  This  monument, 
which  is  in  form  a  marble  shaft,  raises  itself  aloft 
amid  the  beautiful  surroundings  of  trees  and 
sparkling  water,  which  almost  encircle  the  blujEf 
whereon  the  adventurers  built  their  city.  Beneath 
the  very  shadow  of  the  parish  church  of  St.  ]\Iar}''s 
Parish  it  stands,  in  the  graveyard  where  some  of 
the  colony's  earliest  governors  lie  buried.  No 
where  else  could  it  so  appropriately  stand,  for  its 
very  presence  there  is  symbolic  of  the  fact  that  the 
foundations  of  Maryland  were  laid  by  Anglican 
Churchmen,  who  today,  as  in  time  past,  hold 
possession  of  wdiat  will  ever  be  holy  ground  to  the 
Marylander,  as  the  birth-place  of  the  State,  though 
not  the  starting  point  of  the  Church.  To  Kent 
Island  in  the  Chesapeake  we  must  look  for  that. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

A  NEW  DEPARTURE;  THE  PROGRAMME. 

1648 — 1650 

"  Now  join  your  hands,  and  with  your  hands  your  hearts, 
That  no  dissension  hinder  government." 

— Shakespeare. 

The  condition  of  public  affairs  in  his  province  in 
the  closing  weeks  of  the  year  of  grace  1648  certainly 
presented  to  Lord  Baltimore,  even  if  it  did  not 
actually  suggest  itself,  the  opportunity  of  a  splendid 
coiip-cP-etat.  The  situation  was  in  fact  the  same, 
in  a  less  exalted  sphere  and  on  a  humbler  scale,  as 
that  which  had  existed  in  England  after  the  deaths 
of  Queen  Mary  and  Cardinal  Pole.  Queen  and 
cardinal  had  stood  side  by  side,  working  harmoni- 
ously for  the  subjection  of  England  to  the  papacy, 
and  when  together  they  passed  away  there  opened 
out  before  the  nation  a  vision  of  needed  reforms 
accomplished  with  such  perfect  ease,  and  with  such 
general  manifestations  of  popular  approval,  as  to  lead 
even  opponents  to  acknowledge  that  God  was  man- 
ifestly directing  the  affairs  of  the  English  Church  and 
nation,  bringing  light  out  of  darkness,  and  order  out 


3 TO  A   NEW   DEPARTURE. 

of  cliaos.  So  in  INIaryland  the  chief  actors  in  recent 
events  had  all  been  removed.  Leonard  Calvert  had 
been  called  to 

' '  Where  beyond  these  voices  there  is  peace, ' ' 

Secretary  Lewger  had  sailed  for  England  with 
the  intention  of  remaining  there.  Kent  Island  had 
no  commander,  and  the  priests,  whose  power  had 
received  such  a  shock  under  Clayborne's  rule,  had 
not  as  yet  ventured  to  assert  themselves  again.  It 
seemed,  indeed,  as  if  the  old  order  in  Maryland  had 
been  so  completely  changed  that  there  was  not  even 
a  memento  of  it  left  behind. 

Thus  the  hour  had  come  for  Baltimore  to  pro- 
pitiate the  new  rulers  of  England,  who,  if  left  alone, 
were  only  too  likely  to  strip  him  of  all  he  owned  in 
Maryland.  To  avert  such  a  catastrophe  as  this  he 
decided  upon  a  plan  of  action  for  the  government 
of  his  province  which  contained  features  of  so  radi- 
cal a  nature  as  to  involve  a  complete  reversal  of  all 
the  methods  which  had  hitherto  been  followed  in 
Maryland.  He  would  make  IMaryland  thoroughly 
protestant  in  its  sympathy  and  in  its  religion.  By 
so  doing  he  would  both  swamp  Jesuitism,  and  also 
place  himself  in  a  position  where  he  could  ^^ropi- 
tiate  whichever  party  in  the  church  should  e\'entu- 
ally  bear  the  supreme  rule. 


A   NEW   DEPARTURE.  311 

His  programme  looked  to  the  carrying  out  of 
four  distinct  measures  : 

(i.)  The  appointment  of  Protestants  to  the  high- 
est offices  in  the  province. 

The  times  demanded  that  governor,  secretary 
and  commander  should  all  alike  be  protestants. 
Accordingly  removing  Thomas  Greene,  a  Roman 
Catholic,  whom  Leonard  Calvert  ere  he  died  had 
named  as  his  successor,  the  vacancy  in  the  governor- 
ship was  filled  up  by  the  appointment  of  Colonel 
William  Stone.  The  vacancy  in  the  secretar3'ship 
was  filled  by  the  appointment  of  Thomas  Hatton  ; 
while  Robert  Vaughan  was  made  commander  of 
Kent  Island.  The  choice  of  Stone  was  a  particularly 
politic  one.  He  was  well  known  as  being  in  entire 
sympathy  with  the  Parliament,  and  devoted  to  its 
interests.  As  King  Charles  was  now  lying  in  prison  it 
was  no  slight  advantage  to  Baltimore  to  have  such  a 
representative  in  Maryland  :  he  was  worth  more  to 
him  than  an  anny. 

There  is  reason  to  think  that  this  change  from 
the  appointment  of  a  Roman  Catholic  to  a  Protest- 
ant governor  was  not  made  by  Lord  Baltimore 
without  some  fear  and  hesitation,  as  if,  in  appoint- 
ing Stone,  he  was  taking  a  leap  in  the  dark.  In 
the  excitement  of  the  times  he  was  afraid  his  Pro- 


312  A   NEW   DEPARTURE. 

testant  governor  might  take  to  persecuting  the 
Romanists.  Although  he  himself  was  not  a  zeal- 
ous Roman  Catholic  he  had  no  disposition  to  break 
with  his  Church,  or  be  charged  with  abandoning 
his  co-religionists  in  Maryland  to  the  tender  mercies 
of  the  Protestant  majority.  Evidently  fearing, 
however,  something  of  this  kind — a  persecution  of 
Roman  Catholics  carried  on  under  the  form  and 
sanction  of  legislative  acts — he  proceeded  to  guard 
against  its  possibility.  He  therefore  delayed  the 
appointment  of  the  new  governor  until  he  had 
taken  a  solemn  oath  that  he  would  not  use  his  offi- 
cial position  to  oppress  or  molest  the  Roman 
Catholics  left  in  the  province.  This  thoughtful- 
ness  on  behalf  of  the  Roman  Catholics  shows  Bal- 
timore in  a  noble  light.  He  would  not  visit  the 
offenses  of  the  guilty  upon  the  innocent.  All  had 
not  sinned.  If  the  fires  of  strife  and  dissension 
had  been  kindled  by  Jesuit  teachers,  with  the 
Jesuits  he  had  his  own  account  to  settle.  But  he 
would  stretch  out  his  hands  to  help  others.  It  was 
not  a  popular  thing  to  do  :  perhaps  not  even  a  wise 
or  politic  thing.  Still  he  did  it.  And  so  Lord 
Baltimore  required  his  Protestant  governor  to  take 
oath  that  he  would  not  "directly  or  indirectly 
trouble,  molest  or  discountenance  any  Person  what- 


A   NEW   DEPARTURE.  313 

soever  in  the  said  Province  professing-  to  believe  in 
Jesus  Christ,  and  in  particular  no  Roman  Catholic, 
for  or  in  respect  of  his  or  her  Religion."  ^ 

From  the  days  of  Chalmers,  who  gives  the  oath 
without  the  clause,  '  and  in  particular  no  Roman 
Catholic,'  it  has  been  usual  with  some  Mar>dand 
writers  to  quote  the  oath  without  any  reference 
whatever  to  this  clause,  notwithstanding  that  with- 
out it  the  whole  document  is  as  a  watch  without  a 
mainspring.  Lacking  that  clause  it  has  even  been 
assumed  that  the  oath  was  exacted  by  a  Roman 
Catholic  lord  proprietary  on  behalf  of  a  down 
trodden  Protestant  minority!  How  such  an  odd 
notion  ever  obtained  a  moment's  consideration  is  a 
myster>\  It  has  not  even  plausibility  to  recom- 
mend it.  When  the  Puritans  were  rapidly  becom- 
ing a  power  in  England ;  when  Romanism  was 
more  an  object  of  dislike  and  suspicion  than  it  had 
ever  been  since  Mary  had  burned  their  undying 
hatred  of  it  into  the  hearts  of  the  English  people ; 
when  political  considerations  had  dictated  to  Lord 
Baltimore  as  a  measure  of  self  preservation  the 
appointment  of  Protestants  to  fill  the  highest  offi- 
cial places  in  his  colony ;  when  the  Roman  Catho- 
lics were  but  as  a  few  scattered  sheep  without  a 

^  Archives  of  Maryland,  Council,  P.  210. 


314  A   NEW   DEPARTURE. 

shepherd ;  when  the  Roman  Church  herself  was 
utterly  discredited  and  entirely  without  power ; 
when  arrangements  looking  to  the  advent  into  the 
colony  of  five  hundred  Virginian  Protestants  were 
actually  being  made,  and  when  above  all  the 
question  of  depriving  Baltimore  of  his  province 
was  being  agitated  in  influential  circles  in  England, 
there  was  little  need,  forsooth,  of  any  anxiety  on 
the  proprietary's  part  lest  there  should  be,  on  how- 
ever small  a  scale,  a  colonial  St.  Bartholomew's 
massacre.  Nor  did  Lord  Baltimore  fear  one.  His 
fears  were  all  the  other  way.  He  thought  of 
reprisals  on  the  part  of  the  Protestants  of  which 
Roman  Catholics  would  be  the  victims,  and  he  took 
precautions  accordingly. 

Having  thus  bound  over  the  Protestant  governor 
to  keep  the  peace  with  the  Roman  Catholic  portion 
of  his  people  Lord  Baltimore  felt  free  to  add  to  the 
political  and  financial  value  of  his  new  governor's 
appointment  by  insisting  upon  his  bringing  into 
the  province  at  least  five  hundred  immigrants. 
Other  men  for  the  same  service  had  been  liberally 
rewarded  with  broad  acres  and  generous  shares  in 
the  profits  of  the  enterprise,  but  Stone's  reward  was 
the  governorship.  This  condition,  inserted  into 
the  body  of  the  commission,  recorded  how  William 


A   NEW    DEPARTURE.  315 

Stone  had  "undertaken  in  some  short  time  to  pro- 
cure five  hundred  people  of  British  or  Irish  descent 
to  come  from  other  places  and  plant  and  reside 
within  our  said  province  of  Maryland."  ^  For  a 
country  officered  by  Protestants  it  was  well  to 
have  Protestant  citizens,  and  Stone's  immigrants 
were  sure  to  be  of  that  faith  ;  his  recruiting  ground 
naturally  being  Virginia,  he  having  been  high 
sheriff  of  Northampton  county  in  that  state.  Not 
indeed  that  this  was  the  first  time  that  Baltimore 
had  sought  for  immigrants  from  Virginia.  "Upon 
the  express  assurance,  that  there  would  be  a  modi- 
fication of  the  oaths  of  office  and  fidelity,  and  an  enjoy- 
ment of  liberty  of  conscience,"  he  had  already 
persuaded  some  Virginians  to  settle  in  Maryland.  ^ 
Evidently  Lord  Baltimore  liked  the  quality.  No 
v/onder  that  a  few  years  later  Roman  Catholics 
were  only  one  in  thirty  of  the  population.^  But  so 
important  politically  considered  was  this  matter  of 
obtaining  a  large  Protestant  emigration  Lord  Balti- 
more was  not  willing  to  leave  it  entirely  in  the 
hands  of  Stone.  In  the  very  same  year  therefore 
that  we  fi.nd  Stone  hard  at  work  raising  his  quota 


""^  Archives  of  Maryland,  Council,  P.  201. 
^Neill,  Founders  of  Maryland ,  P.  117. 
^  In  1681,  See  McMahon,  P.  232. 


31 6  A  np:w  departure. 

of  emigrants  we  find  Baltimore  as  busih'  engaged 
in  a  similar  way  in  England.  As  the  result  of  his 
efforts  a  Mr.  Brooke,  to  whom  Lord  Baltimore  had 
shown  exceptional  favor,  having  given  him  liberty 
"to  build  and  erect  chapels  in  any  part  of  the  land 
allotted  to  him  and  the  advowsons  and  donations 
to  all  such,"  was  soon  leading  another  expedition 
to  Maryland.  These  newcomers  were  all  of  the 
Anglican  faith  and  their  generous  treatment  in 
religious  matters  is  in  marked  contrast  with  the 
restrictions  placed  on  the  Roman  Catholics  who 
emigrated  to  Maryland.  They  settled  down  on  the 
Patuxent  River,  just  opposite  the  mouth  of  Battle 
Creek,  in  St.  Mary's  county  where  the  name  Dela- 
brooke  still  survives. 

It  was  at  this  time,  1650,  that  a  very  auspicious 
event  occurred  for  all  the  Anglican  settlers  in  the 
province.^  This  was  the  arrival  of  the  Reverend 
Mr.  Wilkinson,  the  first  clergyman  of  the  English 
Church  who  is  definitely  known  to  have  settled  in 
the  province  since  the  departure,  sixteen  years 
before,  of  the  Reverend  Richard  James.  Is  it  too 
much  to  believe  that  either  directly,  by  personal 
request,  as  his  father  had  formerly  sought  and 
obtained  the  services  of  the   Reverend  ]\Ir.  James 

5  Ridgely,  T/ie  Old  Brick  Churches  of  Maryland,  P.  51. 


A    NEW   DEPARTURE.  317 

for  his  Newfoundland  plantation ;  or  indirectly,  as 
the  result  of  a  special  appeal  for  emigrants  of  the 
Anglican  faith  having  attracted  the  Anglican 
priest's  attention,  that  Mr.  Wilkinson  was  secured  as 
pastor  for  the  forlorn  Church  people  of  Maryland  ? 
We  know  very  little  of  this  Anglican  clergyman 
or  his  work.  Like  St.  Paul  he  labored  with  his 
hands  and  was  not  chargeable  to  his  flock.  And 
like  St.  Peter  he  was  a  married  man,  his  wife  Mary, 
and  his  daughters  Elizabeth  and  Rebecca,  accompa- 
nying him  into  the  province.  He  was  in  all 
probability  a  true  missionary  of  Christ,  a  faithful 
pastor  of  souls.  It  is  well  to  say  this  because  there 
is  an  idea  prevalent  that  the  early  clergy  in  Mary- 
land, and  in  the  colonies  generally,  were  men  who 
were  far  from  being  consistent  members  of  their 
profession.  Of  a  later  generation  this  was  unhap- 
pily sometimes  true.  But  the  first  missionaries 
were  men  of  pure  zeal,  absolute  disinterestedness, 
and  of  beautiful  lives.  Of  this  class  Parson  Hunt 
of  Jamestown  was  the  type.  Of  the  latter  class 
Coode^  the  professional  agitator,  ward  politician, 
scheming  trader,  all  things  by  turns,  was,  let  us 
hope,  a  rare  specimen. 

^  Why  do  so  many  of  our  most  popular  writers  hold  up  to 
ridicule  and  contempt,  if  not  religion  itself,  at  least  the  men 
who   represent   it  ?     The   clergy   are    always    either    fools     or 


3l8  A    NEW   DEPARTURE. 

(3)  The  third  measure  on  the  proprietary's  pro- 
gramme was  eventually  to  become  known  as  "iVn 
Act  concerning  Religion." '  It  passed  the  House 
on  April  21st  1649  ^^^^  was  confirmed  by  the  pro- 
prietary in  the  year  following.  As  this  measure^ 
which  in  its  inception,  as  also  in  its  provisions, 
w^as  nothing  more  than  an  Act  for  securing  uni- 
formity in  religious  matters,  has  since  become 
famous  as  the  "Toleration  Act,"  it  becomes  neces- 
sary to  speak  of  it  at  some  length  with  a  view 
to  its  true  nature,  and  its  real  place  in  Maryland 
history,  being  thoroughly  understood. 

The  Act  contains  five  sections.  Of  these  sections 
the  first  four  settled  the  religion  of  the  colony,  and 
laid    down    severe    punishments    for    disobedience. 

hypocrites  to  them,  although  but  an  infinitesimally  small  pro- 
portion of  them  can  with  any  justice  be  so  described.  See,  e.  g., 
Winston  Churchill,  Richard  Carvel^  pp.  67  and  334.  Does  any 
one  suppose  that  the  Rev.  Bennett  Allen  was  the  typical  Marj'- 
land  clergyman  ?  And  if  not,  what  is  the  object  of  representing 
him  as  such?  In  this  respect,  as  in  other  ways,  how  im- 
measurably superior  to  these  writers,  is  Shakespeare  the 
greatest  figure  in  English  Literature.  He  never  played  to  the 
gallery,  nor  ever,  even  indirectly,  brought  religion  into  dis- 
pute. 

For  Coode's  character,  see  Chapter  XXI. 

■  Archives  of  Marylaiid.  Assembly.  1637-1664.  Pp.  224 
and  247.  "This  famous  statute  was  drawn  up  by  Cecilius  him- 
self, and  passed  the  Assembly  exactly  as  it  came  from  him, 
without  amendment  Fiske,  Old  Virginia  and  Her  Neighbors, 
vol.  i,  P.  309. 


A    NEW   DEPARTURE.  319 

Under  the  first  section  it  was  provided  that  those 
who  denied  the  Godhead  of  any  person  of  the 
Trinity,  or  uttered  reproachful  words  concerning 
the  Trinity,  should  be  punished  with  death,  and 
their  property  confiscated.  Under  the  second  sec- 
tion those  who  spoke  reproachfully  of  our  Lord's 
Mother,  or  of  any  of  the  Apostles  or  Evangelists, 
were  liable  to  be  fined,  imprisoned,  whipped.  By 
the  third  section  it  was  settled  that  whipping  and 
fining  likewise  awaited  those  who  styled  their 
neighbors  heretics,  schismatics,  puritans  and  the 
like.  By  the  fourth  section  fines  and  imprison- 
ments and  whippings  were  decreed  against  pro- 
faners  of  the  Sabbath  or  Lord's  Day.  The  fifth 
section  was  of  an  entirely  different  character. 
Naively  confessing  that  "the  enforcing  of  the 
conscience  in  matters  of  religion  has  frequently 
fallen  out  to  be  dangerous  to  commonwealths,"  it 
was  enacted  and  ordained  that  no  person  should 
suffer  molestation  on  account  of  the  free  exer- 
cise of  his  religion  except  as  had  been  set  forth  in 
the  earlier  sections. 

A  strange  Toleration  Act !  With  the  exception 
of  the  last  clause,  itself  contradictory  of  all  that 
had  preceded  it,  there  is  nothing  tolerant  about  it. 
It  is  really  a  most  disgraceful  piece  of  intolerance. 


320  A   NEW   DEPARTURE. 

It  is  not  a  bit  better  than  the  blue  laws  of  Connec- 
ticut, or  the  martial  code  of  Virginia,  the  Articles 
of  1610.  There  is  not  a  legislative  assembly  in 
the  world  today  that  w^ould  venture  to  pass  such  a 
law,  and  still  less  enforce  its  provisions.  Even 
for  the  standard  of  ideas  of  two  centuries  and  a 
half  ago  there  is  nothing  creditable  about  it.  It 
was  a  going  back  into  the  dark.  Not  for  a  genera- 
tion had  any  Englishman  been  put  to  death  for  his 
religious  opinions,  or  his  maintenance  of  them  by 
word  of  mouth  ;  not  in  fact  since  the  puritan  Arch- 
bishop Abbott  had  put  to  death  two  men  for  Arian- 
ism  in  161 2.  But  here  was  an  Act  under  which 
the  penalty  for  denying  the  Godhead  or  any  of  the 
three  persons  of  the  Trinity  was  death  :  minor 
offenses  of  a  similar  character  being  punishable 
with  stripes  and  imprisonment.  The  passage  of 
this  Act  is  actually  described  "as  one  of  the  proud 
boasts  of  Maryland,"  and  "one  of  her  greatest  glo- 
ries." ^  Yet  neither  the  Jews  nor  the  Quakers  were 
safe  under  its  shadow,  as  both  seemed  to  have  well 
understood,  Jews  at  any  rate  being  almost  as  scarce 
in  Maryland  as  Roman  Catholics  in  Virginia. 
Even  the  mere  profession  of  his  faith  by  a  Jew  in 
"the  land  of  the  sanctuary"  might  easily  cost  him 
8  McSherry.     P.  65. 


A    NEW    DEPARTURE.  321 

his  life.  As  for  the  Quakers,  in  a  pamphlet 
entitled  ^^The  Deceiver  of  the  Nations  discovered 
aiid  his  cruelty  made  manifest^  more  especially  his 
cruel  works  of  darkness  i^i  Marilaiid  a7id  Virginia  " 
the  author  says  that  "  the  Indians,  whom  they 
judge  to  be  heathen,  exceed  in  kindness,  in  courte- 
sies, in  love,  and  mercy  unto  them  who  were  stran- 
gers, which  is  a  shame  to  the  mad,  rash  rulers  of 
Mariland  that  have  acted  so  barbarously  to  our 
people,  and  them  that  come  to  visit  them  in  the 
name  of  the  Lord,  that  instead  of  receiving  them, 
rejected  them,  and  made  order  after  order,  and  war- 
rant after  warrant  for  pursuing,  banishing  and 
whipping  of  them."  ^ 

Now  our  Roman  Catholic  brethren  are  credited 
with  the  honor  of  having  passed  this  Act  under  the 
supposition  that  they  had  a  majority  of  their  faith 

^"In  1658,  Joseph  Coale  and  Thomas  Thurston,  preachers 
belonging  to  that  body,  were  treated  with  great  severity  by  the 
authorities,  and  compelled  to  flee  that  country." 

History  of  the  United  States,  Edmund  Oilier,  vol.  i,  P.  77. 
Compare  with  the  foregoing  and  the  words  in  the  text  the 
following  from  McSherry's  History,  P.  88:  "Here,  too,  the 
gentle  Friends  found  peace  and  refuge.  In  England,  in 
Virginia,  in  Massachusetts,  and  the  north,  the  pillory  and  the 
whipping  post  awaited  them,  and  almost  in  sight  of  Plymouth 
Rock,  the  gallows  were  erected  for  them.  Everywhere,  save  in 
Maryland,  their  peaceful  creed  was  proscribed  and  punished  as 
a  crime.  There  only  was  their  religious  worship  held  publicly 
and  without  interruption." 


322  A   NEW   DEPARTURE. 

in  the  House  of  Assembly/^  We  are,  however, 
obliged  to  refuse  them  this  doubtful  honor,  inas- 
much as  there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  they 
were  merely  a  small  minority  in  the  Assembly,  the 
Anglicans  far  outnumbering  them.  iVlthough  had 
they  been  in  a  majority  no  credit  was  really  due  to 
them.  In  order  to  appreciate  this  it  is  only 
necessary  to  remember  that  on  January  30th,  1649, 
three  months  before  this  law  was  passed.  King 
Charles  had  been  publicly  executed,  and  the  Com- 
monwealth had  come  into  power  pledged  to  the 
extermination  of  Episcopacy.  If,  then,  under  such 
circumstances  the  Roman  Catholics  were  its  authors 
it  would  necessarily  shrink  into  a  piece  of  panic 
stricken  legislation,  a  mere  attempt  to  pacify  Moloch 
by  throwing  to  the  infuriated  god  the  ver}-  principle 
for  which  the  Roman  Church  had  stood,  still 
stands — the  Bishops  of  Rome  themselves  being 
witnesses — and  probably  will  ever  continue  to 
stand,  that  force  may  be  used  to  compel  men  to 
accept  the  truth  ^^  whenever  it  can  safely  be  done. 

10  Davis,  The  Day  Star.  P.  160.  Lodge,  History  of  the 
English  Colonics  in  America.     P.  119, 

^^See  S3'llabus  of  Pius  ix,  March  8,  1S61.  In  this  extraor- 
dinary document  they  are  condemned  who  say  the  Church  may 
not  employ  force.  {Ecclesia  vis  inferendce  potestatem  non 
hahet. ) 


A    NEW   DEPARTURE.  323 

Nor  are  we  left  to  general  principles  and  the 
explicit  direction  of  popes  to  know  this.  For  just 
hov/  Rome  would  have  treated  a  genuine  proposal 
to  tolerate  heretics  may  be  inferred  from  the  treat- 
ment even  this  poor  imitation  article  received 
which  compared  with  the  genuine  thing  is  but  as 
base  metal  offered  in  exchange  for  good.  In 
the  very  next  House  of  Assembly,  when  it  was 
proposed  to  make  this  Act  a  permanent  feature  of  the 
Maryland  Constitution  there  were  four  Roman 
Catholics  present.  To  a  man  these  four  voted 
against  the  measure  and  that  not  because  it  was  an 
intolerant  edict  and  a  disgrace  to  the  statute  book 
of  their  country  but  because  it  was  too  tolerant  !  ^^ 

As,  however,  the  same  claim  is  sometimes  advanced 
on  the  ground  that  Lord  Baltimore,  its  real  author, 
was  a  Roman  Catholic  I  must  ask  attention  to  the 
fact  that  Baltimore  was  in  no  sense  a  representa- 
tive of  the  pope  or  the  Roman  Church  ;  but  that  he 
was,  on  the  contrary,  an  object  of  dislike  and  suspicion 
to  a  powerful  section  of  that  Church.  Indeed 
he  himself  would  have  given  a  very  different 
account  of  the  origin  of  this  measure.  He  had 
little  thought  of  its  bringing  any  honor  to  Rome. 
He  did  expect   that   its   effect  on   the   people   of 

^2  Neill,  Founders  of  Maryland.     P.  123. 


324  A   NEW    DEPARTURE. 

the  colony  would  be  to  insure  a  return  of  quiet- 
ness, peace  and  confidence  to  which,  owing  to 
religious  differences,  they  had  been  too  long 
strangers  !  For  this  purpose  he  was  very  desirous 
that  it  should  be  widely  known.  He  therefore 
directed  that  it  should  be  set  up  in  all  the  courts  of 
his  province  and  its  provisions  faithfully  obeyed.  ^^  It 
is,  however,  here  extremely  interesting  to  note  that 
the  legislators  of  Maryland  who  passed  this  measure, 
just  because  Lord  Baltimore  had  asked  them  to  do 
so,  as  if  to  show  how  little  they  regarded  it,  on 
the  very  same  day  they  agreed  to  it,  wrote  him  a 
lengthy  letter  of  which  the  burden  was  corn  and 
tobacco  and  cattle  but,  never  once  do  they  seem 
aware  of  having  passed  a  Toleration  Act  at  all  !  ^* 

With  the  history  of  the  Roman  Church  standing 
forever  in  the  background  the  claim  of  having 
inaugurated  an  era  of  religious  toleration  in  INIary- 
land  is  very  delightful.  That  Church  has  never 
been  distinguished  for  its  kindly  treatment  of 
"heretics."  Attempts  have  been  made  in  recent 
times  to  blame  the  state  for  all  the  wicked  burnings, 
and  all  the  horrible  inventions  of  thumb  screws  and 
racks  which  are  laid  at  her  doors  by   Protestant 

^^  Archives  of  Maryland,  Council.     P.  384. 

^^  Archives  of  Maryland,  Assembly.     Pp.  238-243. 


A   NEW   DEPARTURE.  325 

historians. ^^  But  even  if  the  state  could  be 
adjudg-ed  guilty  in  the  first  instance  is  the  Church, 
its  teacher,  to  go  scot  free  ?  Can  the  Church  refuse 
to  accept  the  principle  laid  down  by  her  Divine 
Head,  "  By  their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them "  ? 
Spain  is,  and  has  been  for  centuries,  a  Roman 
Catholic  country,  and  yet  Spain  gave  to  the  world 
the  dreadful  Inquisition  with  its  fearful  record  of 
torture  and  fire  extending  over  four  long  centuries. 
Were  the  myriad  victims  of  its  fierce  intolerance 
all  torn  from  the  loving  arms  of  the  Church,  while 
she  stood  by  shedding  unavailing  tears  at  her  help- 
lessness to  save  them?  Was  the  Bishop  of  Rome  in 
those  old  days  a  mere  creature  of  kings  and  princes, 
and  even  of  mobs  ?  And  was  he  really  obliged  to  go 
in  solemn  state  to  St.  Peter's,  and  sing  a  Te  Deum  for 
the  bloody  work  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Day  ?  And, 
forsooth,  was  it  the  state  which  compelled  him  to 
strike  the  medal  which  commemorated  as  a  glorious 
achievement  that  crowning  deed  of  fearful  treachery 
and  monstrous  cruelty,  of  which  the  blood  will 
never  wash  out  ?  Oh,  that  the  outspoken  frankness 
and  honesty  of  a  member  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church  recently  lecturing  to  students  in  Washing- 

15  Gibbons,  Faith  of    Otir  Fathers.     P.    241,    and  following 
pages. 


326  A   NEW   DEPARTURE. 

ton  were  more  common,  as  he  used  these  remarkable 
words  :  "  History  has  not  pages  enough  to  record 
the  absurdities  committed  by  Christian  priests  and 
princes.  This  is  God's  lesson  to  us.  It  is  outlined 
in  the  history  of  every  individual  of  His  Church, 
from  the  savagery  of  St.  Peter,  pulling  his  sword 
to  chop  off  the  servant's  ear,  down  to  the  cruel 
shooting  of  Hugo  Bassi.  Why  do  Catholic  writers 
seek  to  cover  up  the  horrors  of  St.  Bartholomew, 
the  cruelties  of  an  Inquisition  which  burned  the 
flesh  of  human  beings  made  in  God's  likeness,  or 
the  self-sufficient  wisdom  which  refused  to  recognize 
the  truths  discovered  by  Galileo  ?  "  ^*^ 

I  do  not  love  to  go  back  in  thought  to  these 
dark  times,  but  our  separated  brethren  compel  me 
to  show  that  toleration  has  never  been  a  part 
of  their  creed,  any  more  than  in  earlier  days  it 
was  a  part  of  our  own  creed.  Nay  it  is  not 
yet  an  accepted  principle  of  the  Roman  faith. 
Even  today  Roman  Bishops  have  to  take  a  vow  to 
assail  and  to  persecute  all  heretics  and  schismatics.^'' 
Undoubtedly  there  are  kindly  and   tolerant   bish- 

^•^ See  a  Hartford,  Conn,,  newspaper,  July  12,  1S94,  quoting 
Mr.  J.  B.  Walker,  Editor  of  Cosmopolitan. 

^^ ' '  Hsereticos  schismaticos  ^-  *  *  pro  posse  persequar  et 
impugnabo."     See  Roman  Pofitifical  P.  63,  Ed.  Rome,  1S18. 


A   NEW   DEPARTURE.  327 

Ops  and  priests  of  the  Roman  Church  in  our 
midst,  and  certainly  their  people  are  often  lovely 
and  pleasant  in  their  lives,  and  we  could  ill  spare 
their  influence  for  good,  but  let  none  of  them  talk 
of  Rome's  theories  of  religious  liberty.  Let  them 
not  contradict  what  her  chief  bishops,  and  her 
greatest  saints  ^^  and  doctors  have  proclaimed  to  the 
world.  Such  teaching  is  false  to  their  Church. 
The  pope  himself  repudiates  it,  anathematizes  it, 
casts  it  out,  and  rejects  it  as  an  unclean  thing. ^^ 

(4)  The  fourth  item  on  the  programme  was 
the  issuing  of  new  Conditions  of  Plantation.  This 
was  done  July,  1649.  ^^  ^^^^^  ^^  remembered  that 
the  crucial  clauses  of  the  Conditions  issued 
November  loth,  1641  —  those  directed  against 
the  Jesuits  —  had  never  been  published.  Bal- 
timore had  quite  a  free  hand.  With  the  priests 
hiding  in  exile  there  v/as  now  an  open  field. 
A  Protestant  governor  would  have  no  qualms 
of  conscience,  nor  a  Protestant  secretary  either, 
upon  being  summoned  to  publish  Conditions 
which  were  hateful   to   the  Jesuits.     Accordingly 

^^St.  Thomas  Aquinas  says  that  heretics  are  to  be  killed, 
or  as  in  another  passage,  "not  to  be  liberated  from  the 
sentence  of  death,"  (non  tamen  ut  liberentur  a  sententia  mortis) 
or  as  in  still  another  passage,  "exterminated  from  the  world." 

^^  See  note  11,  page  322. 


328  A   NEW   DEPARTURE. 

the  proprietary  now  issued  Conditions  of  which 
some  clauses  were  more  sweeping  and  drastic  than 
any  which  had  preceded  them.  There  was,  to  be 
sure,  not  so  much  reason  for  these  restricting  clauses 
now,  but  who  could  tell  whether  they  might  not 
soon  be  needed  again.  The  power  at  which  they 
were  aimed  was  only  scotched,  not  killed.  More- 
over there  was  the  Puritan  power  to  appease,  and 
its  friendship  to  gain.  Altogether  it  was  a  difficult 
task  which  lay  before  the  lord  proprietary^,  but  no 
man  knew  better  how  to  accomplish  it  than  the 
self-reliant,  quiet,  determined  man  who  ruled 
Maryland  from  beyond  the  seas. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 
MARYI.AND  UNDER   PURITAN  RULE. 

1650-1656. 

"  A  sect,  whose  chief  devotion  lies 
In  odd  perverse  antipathies  : 
In  falling  out  with  that  or  this, 
And  finding  somewhat  still  amiss." 

— BuTi^ER  :  ' '  Hudibras. ' ' 

Lord  Baltimore's  touting  for  emigrants  in  Eng- 
land and  Ireland,  in  Massachusetts  and  Virginia, 
was  in  one  respect  a  marked  success.  Hundreds  of 
stalwart  men  in  response  to  his  efforts  swarmed 
over  the  fertile  lands  which  lay  on  both  sides  of 
Chesapeake  Bay.  Homesteads  rose  as  by  magic, 
broad  acres  suddenly  came  under  cultivation,  where 
shortly  before  the  primeval  forest  had  stood,  and 
the  waters  of  the  Chesapeake,  studded  with  the 
light  craft  of  the  fishermen,  no  longer  wore  the 
deserted  appearance  of  a  silent  and  unknown  sea. 

But,  alas  !  in  the  matter  of  the  quality  of  his  emi- 
grants Lord  Baltimore's  success  left  something  to 


330  MARYLAND    UNDER    PURITAN    RULE. 

be  desired.  They  were  a  motley  assemblage. 
Even  Charles  II.,  from  his  retreat  in  Holland, 
described  them  as  "all  kinds  of  schismatics  and 
sectaries  and  other  ill  affected  persons."  This 
witness  was  true.  They  were  of  all  sorts  and  con- 
ditions of  men.^  Bitterly  did  Lord  Baltimore  him- 
self complain  about  the  character  of  some  of  these 
settlers  which  he  had  been  at  so  much  pains  to 
obtain ;  not  hesitating  to  describe  them  as  "  the 
basest  of  men,  and  unworthy  of  the  least  favor  and 
forbearance." 

The  headquarters  of  the  disturbing  element  were 
at  Providence  on  the  Severn,  now  Annapolis.  To 
this  place  had  originally  come  some  Puritan 
refugees  from  Virginia.  Others  in  the  recent  influx 
of  population  of  like  political  and  religious  sympa- 
thies naturally  gravitated  thither,  until  there  had 
grown  up  quite  a  flourishing  settlement.  But  its 
whole  tone  and  spirit  was  alien  to  the  proprietary. 
He  was  a  Romanist  and  they  were  Puritans.  In 
no  long  time  they  began  to  seek  opportunity  to 
resist  the  proprietary's  claims  and  to  jeopardize  his 
rights.  This,  however,  by  direct  attack  was  no 
easy  thing  to  do.  Presently  realizing  the  futility 
of   their  course,  they  adopted  other  tactics.     Com- 

^^^^  Foimders  of  JMaryland,  P.  154. 


MARYLAND    UNDER    PURITAN    RULE.  33 1 

plaints  and  murmurings  began  to  be  heard  on 
every  side.  The  place  became  rife  with  reports  of 
the  sufferings  of  the  poor  afflicted  Protestants.  Such 
reports  in  face  of  the  fact  that  the  stream  of  immi- 
gration which  had  been  bringing  settlers  into  the 
colony  for  years,  indeed  from  the  first,  was  emphati- 
cally a  protestant  stream  was  manifestly  an  impu- 
dent slander.  Probably  Clayborne  was  behind  the 
scenes.  Some  such  supposition  as  this  is  in  fact 
absolutely  necessary  to  account  for  the  factious  and 
bitter  opposition  to  which  the  Lord  Proprietary  of 
Maryland  was  now  subjected.  But  whatever  its 
origin  the  old  tales  of  persecution  were  revived,  to 
be  eventually  poured  into  the  not  unwilling  ears  of 
sympathizing  co-religionists  on  the  other  side  of 
the  ocean.  The  poor,  persecuted  Protestants  of 
Maryland  were  represented  as  in  an  evil  case.  Unfor- 
tunately for  the  Puritans'  reputation  for  veracity 
there  now  were  no  such  sufferers  for  conscience 
sake  in  the  country.  Promptly  following  these 
charges  a  statement  was  issued  by  the  governor, 
signed  by  himself,  the  various  Protestant  members 
of  the  Assembly,  and  a  large  nmnber  of  the  leading 
Protestants  of  the  province,  afiSrming  that  they  all 
enjoyed  the  utmost  liberty,  had  nothing  whatever 
to  complain  about,  and  knew  nothing  of  the  exist- 


332  MARYLAND   UNDER   PURITAN    RULE. 

ence  of   such  a  state  of  affairs  as  the  Puritans  had 
reported.^ 

A  public  statement  of  that  kind  made  by  the 
officials  of  the  colony,  who  were  themselves 
Protestants,  must  have  sadly  disconcerted  the  group 
of  irreconcilables  on  the  banks  of  the  Severn,  who 
were  doubtless  hard  pressed  to  know  what  was  the 
next  best  thing  for  them  to  do.  For  the  burden  of 
their  grief  was  not  that  they  were  being  persecuted, 
but  that  they  were  not ;  their  difficulty  being  a 
similar  one  to  that  of  the  Jews  who  delivered  Jesus 

^Bozman,  Vol.  II,  Pp.  672,  673,  and  Burnap,  Pp.  181,  182. 

This  statement  of  Governor  Stone  and  the  principal  men  of 
the  colony,  known  as  the  Protestant  Declaration,  ran  as  follows: 
' '  The  declaration  and  certificate  of  William  Stone,  Esq. ,  Lieu- 
tenant of  the  Province  of  Maryland,  by  commission  from  the 
Right  Honorable  Lord  Baltimore,  Lord  Proprietary'  thereof,  and 
of  Captain  John  Price,  Mr,  Thomas  Hatton,  and  Captain  Robert 
Vaughan,  of  his  Lordship's  Council  there,  and  of  divers  of  the 
Burgesses  now  met  in  the  Assembly  there,  and  other  Protestant 
inhabitants  of  the  same  province,  made  the  17th  day  of  April, 
A.  D.  1650." 

"We,  the  said  Lieutenant,  Council,  Burgesses,  and  other 
Protestant  inhabitants  above  mentioned,  whose  names  are 
hereunto  subscribed,  do  declare  and  certify  to  all  persons  whoi:i 
it  may  concern.  That,  according  to  an  act  of  Assembly  here, 
and  several  other  strict  injunctions  and  declarations  by  his  said 
lordship  for  that  purpose  made  and  provided,  we  do  here  enjoy 
all  fitting  and  convenient  freedom  and  liberty  in  the  exercise  of 
our  religion  under  his  lordship's  government  and  interest ;  and 
that  none  of  us  are  anyways  troubled  or  molested,  for  or  by 
reason  thereof,  within  his  lordship's  said  province." 


MARYLAND    UNDER   PURITAN    RULE.  333 

to  the  Roman  Governor  of  Judse  because  he  made 
himself  a  king,  whereas  everyone  knew  that  his 
chief  offence  in  their  eyes  was  that  he  utterly 
refused  to  be  a  king. 

It  is  however,  abundantly  manifest  from  the 
*'  Protestant  Declaration  "  that  Clayborne's  opposi- 
tion found  no  sympathy  among  Church  people 
generally,  who  formed  the  great  bulk  of  the 
population.^  His  strength  lay  only  among  the 
more  rabid  and  anti-Romanist  section  on  the 
Severn  ;  but  with  these  he  was  all  powerful. 
Yet  disconcerting  to  its  authors  as  the  ignomin- 
ious break  down  of  the  charge  of  persecuting 
Protestants  must  have  been,  the  opposition  to 
Lord  Baltimore  was  not  silenced.  His  enemies 
now  took  other  ground.  No  true  Englishman, 
they  contended,  could  take  the  oath  of  fidelity 
which  he  exacted  from  those  who  settled  upon  his 
lands.  To  allow  the  lord  proprietary  to  describe 
himself  as  an  absolute  lord  was  to  give  him  the 
kingship  entirely.  And  what  more  would  he  have  ? 
Baltimore,  with  his  usual  tact,  immediately  omitted 
the  words  which  wounded  their  consciences.  To 
do  the  Puritans  justice  their  objections  were  well 
taken,  Baltimore  having  exceeded  his  powers  in 
^  Ridgely,  An^ials  of  Annapolis^  P.  34. 


334  MARYLAND    UNDER   PURITAN    RULE. 

exacting  the  oath  from  any  one.  The  colonists 
owed  allegiance  to  the  King  of  England  whose 
subjects  they  were,  not  to  him  who  was  himself  a 
subject.  But  although  their  objections  were  well 
founded  these  Puritans  were  scarcely  the  men  to 
have  advanced  them.  "  They  had  been  made 
acquainted  by  Captain  Stone,  before  they  came  to 
Maryland,  with  that  oath  of  fidelity,  which  was  to 
be  taken  by  those  who  would  hold  any  land  there 
from  his  lordship  ;  .  .  .  .  nor  had  they  any  objection 
to  the  oath,  till  they  were  as  much  refreshed  with 
their  entertainment  there,  as  the  snake  in  the 
fable  was  with  the  countryman's  beast ;  for  which 
some  of  them  were  equally  thankful."  ^  The 
Puritans  were  not  however  satisfied.  Never  did 
that  old  fable  of  the  wolf  and  the  lamb  receive 
such  ample  fulfilment.  One  would  have  thought, 
considering  Baltimore's  conciliatory  attitude,  that 
even  his  enemies  would  have  been  willing  to  let 
him  alone.  But,  alas,  men  are  often  ready  to 
incur  much  greater  trouble  and  expense  to  injure 

•*  In  1655,  there  were  twenty  thousand  settlers  in  the  province, 
yet  in  the  battle  of  Providence  only  one  hundred  and  seventy- 
five  Protestants  were  arrayed  against  one  hundred  and  thirty 
Roman  Catholics.  And  this  was  a  sort  of  colonial  Marston 
Moor,  where  every  man  Avho  could  bear  arms,  for  or  against 
the  cause,  was  expected  to  be  present. 


MARYLAND    UNDER   PURITAN   RULE.  335 

an  enemy  than  they  are  to  gratify  a  friend,  and 
Clayborne,  who  was  focusing  Puritan  discontent, 
could  not  forget  the  battle  on  the  Pocomoke  and 
his  wounded  honor.  Ere  long  an  ample  oppor- 
tunity presented  itself  to  be  completely  avenged  on 
his  adversary.  This  came  about  through  the  state 
of  public  affairs  in  England. 

As  soon  as  Cromwell  had  pacified  the  English 
royalists,  he  turned  his  attention  to  the  royalists 
abroad.  Maryland  had  never  been  a  royalist  col- 
ony in  the  sense  that  Virginia  had.  She  had 
latterly  in  fact  espoused  the  cause  of  the  Common- 
wealth. It  is  true  that  immediately  after  the  exe- 
cution of  Charles  I,  Thomas  Green,  the  acting 
governor,  had  proclaimed  Charles  II.  as  king,  but 
this  he  had  done  without  authority,  and  upon  the 
return  of  Governor  Stone,  w^ho  had  been  absent  in 
Virginia,  the  act  was  promptly  disowned  by  the 
proprietary  government.^  With  this  sole  exception 
there  was  absolutely  no  legitimate  ground  of  com- 
plaint against  Maryland.  She  had  been  faithful  to 
the  Commonwealth.  So  clearly  was  this  the  case 
that  Charles  II.,  when  without  any  prospect  of  ever 

^  When  Charles  II  came  to  the  throne,  Philip  Calvert.  Lord 
Baltimore's  then  governor,  made  a  great  point  of  the  proclama- 
tion.    Archives  of  Maryland,  Council,  P.  393. 


336  MARYLAND    UNDER   PURITAN    RULE. 

succeeding  to  his  father's  throne,  a  mere  fugitive, 
had  issued  his  commission  assuming  to  depose 
Cecilius  Calvert  and  give  Maryland  to  another, 
because  "he  did  visibl}-  adhere  to  the  rebels  of 
England."  '^  Moreover  in  Maryland  herself  all  was 
well.  The  recent  legislation  concerning  religion 
came  in  usefully  here.  It  showed  how  the  province 
had  proved  to  be  a  refuge  for  persecuted  Puri- 
tans from  Virginia,  as  her  very  enemies  must 
acknowledge,  for  she  had  sheltered  them.  Lord 
Baltimore  was  therefore  able  to  make  out  a  good 
case  on  behalf  of  his  province.  And  this  he  did  so 
well  that  it  was  decided  by  the  Privy  Council  to 
leave  out  all  mention  of  Maryland  in  the  instruc- 
tions to  be  given  for  the  reduction  of  the  colonies? 
the  feeling  being  that  she  needed  no  disciplining. 
Nevertheless  when  the  Act  was  passed  the  fatal 
words  had  been  inserted :  "  For  the  reducing, 
settling  and  governing  of  all  the  plantations  within 
the  Bay  of  Chesapeake."  Clay  borne  had  been  at 
work.  As  if  to  leave  no  loop-hole  of  escape  he  had 
got  himself  appointed  as  one  of  the  four  commis- 
sioners whose  duty  it  was  to  see  that  the  work  was 
faithfully  done.  With  Clayborne  as  one  of  the 
commissioners  the  Privy  Council  might  have  saved 
^Neill,  Founders  of  Maryland^  P.  126. 


MARYLAND    UNDER   PURITAN    RULE.  2)2)7 

themselves  any  uneasiness  on  that  score.  They 
had  appointed  a  man  upon  whom  they  could  thor- 
oughly depend  to  do  all  that  anyone  could  do.  An 
old  writer  discussing  the  motives  of  the  Commis- 
sioners, and  especially  the  claim  that  they  were 
influenced  in  their  treatment  of  Maryland  by  relig- 
ious considerations,  says  quaintly,  "  It  was  not 
religion,  it  was  not  punctilios  they  stood  upon  :  it 
was  that  sweete,  that  rich,  that  large  country  they 
aimed  at."^  With  Clay  borne,  however,  another 
motive  was  paramount.  He  sought  vengeance. 
Losing  no  time  to  accomplish  his  heart's  desire  he, 
and  his  fellow  commissioners,  forthwith  sailed  for 
Maryland.  In  March  1652  they  were  at  St.  Mary's, 
where  they  heralded  their  arrival  by  deposing  Gov- 
ernor Stone,  seizing  the  records  of  the  province,  and 
establishing  a  new  government  under  six  commis- 
sioners named  by  themselves  over  whom  they 
eventually  set  Stone  as  their  representative.  At 
last  Clayborne  had  ample  satisfaction  for  the  wrongs 
he  had  suffered.  But  to  his  infinite  credit  it  is  to 
be  noted  that  on  the  whole  he  acted  with  much 
moderation.  Great  was  the  rejoicing  among  the  Puri- 
tans in  Maryland,  great  too  among  the  Puritans  in 

^  Leah  and  Rachel,  Pp.  24  and  25  ;  also  Longford's  Refutation, 
Pp.  4  and  10. 


338  MARYLAND   UNDER   PURITAN    RULE. 

England,  at  what  they  regarded  as  "Babylon's  Fall 
in  Maryland."  ^ 

Thus  things  remained  for  about  two  years.  At 
the  end  of  that  time  Baltimore,  who  was  doubtless 
in  receipt  of  frequent  letters  from  his  province 
thought  that  he  could  rightly  urge  Stone  to  throw 
off  Clayborne's  rule  and  assume  his  old  position  as 
governor.  Stone  was  not  convinced  it  was  the 
wisest  step  to  take,  but  he  followed  the  directions 
he  had  received,  and  Baltimore  presently  found 
himself  again  recognized  as  the  Lord  Proprietary  of 
Maryland.  But  the  step  was  premature.  As  soon 
as  Clayborne  heard  in  Virginia  of  Stone's  doings  he 
hastened  to  Maryland.  With  his  reappearance  on 
the  St.  Mary's  River  the  spirit  of  Baltimore's 
friends  was  immediately  crushed,  and  they  begged 
the  governor  not  to  attempt  any  resistance.  The 
Roman  Catholics  especially  were  anxious  that  he 
should  not  give  battle,  being  convinced  that  such 
an  attempt  could  only  end  in  new  troubles  for 
them.  Stone  followed  their  advice  and  submitted 
to  the  enemy,  with  the  result  that  Clayborne's 
yoke  was  more  firmly  than  ever  riveted  on  the 
province.  But  the  Roman  Catholics  did  not  save 
themselves  by  this  timely  concession.    When  order 

8  Anderson,  Vol.11,  P.  173. 


MARYLAND   UNDER   PURITAN    RULE.  339 

was  again  restored  "An  Act  concerning  Religion  " 
was  passed,  the  gift  of  the  new  Puritan  Legislature, 
another  Toleration  Act,  for  such  I  suppose  we  must 
consider  it.^  Granting  religious  liberty  to  the  people 
it  did  so  within  somewhat  narrower  limits  than  the 
earlier,  and  more  famous,  measure  after  which  it  was 
plainly  fashioned ;  which  had  evidently  inspired 
it,  and  the  place  of  which  it  was  clearly  intended 
to  fill/°     The  earlier  Act  had  provided  that  no  one 

^Archives  of  Maryland,  Assembly,  Pp.  340  and  341. 

AN  ACT  CONCERNING   RKIylGION. 

It  is  enacted  and  declared  in  the  name  of  his  Highness,  the 
Lord  Protector,  with  the  consent  and  by  the  authority  of  the 
present  General  Assembly,  that  none  who  profess  and  exercise 
the  Popish  Religion,  commonly  known  by  the  name  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  Religion,  can  be  protected  in  this  province  by 
the  laws  of  England  formerly  established  and  yet  unrepealed, 
nor  by  the  Governor  of  the  Commonwealth  of  England,  Scot- 
land and  Ireland,  and  the  dominions  thereunto  belonging, 
published  by  his  Highness,  the  Lord  Protector,  but  are  to  be 
restrained  from  the  exercise  thereof,  therefore  all  and  every 
person  or  persons  concerned  in  the  law  aforesaid  are  required 
to  take  notice. 

Such  as  profess  faith  in  God  by  Jesus  Christ  (though  differ- 
ing in  judgment  from  the  doctrine,  worship  and  discipline 
publicly  held  forth  shall  not  be  restrained  from,  but  shall  be 
protected  in  the  profession  of  the  faith)  and  exercise  of  their 
religion  so  as  they  abuse  not  this  libert}"  to  the  injury  of 
others  ....  provided  that  this  liberty  be  not  extended  to 
popery  or  prelacy,  nor  to  such  as  under  the  profession  of  Christ 
hold  forth  and  practice  licentiousness." 

'^^  The  earlier  Act  Concerning  Religion  was  repealed  by  the 
new  legislature.     See  Archives  of  Maryland,  Assembly,  P.  351. 


340  MARYLAND    UNDER   PURITAN    RULE. 

professing  faith  in  Christ  was  to  be  molested  in  the 
free  exercise  of  his  religion.  Such  liberty  however, 
was  not  to  be  extended  to  such  persons  as  Unitarians, 
Jews  and  the  like,  that  is  all  persons  who  did  not 
believe  in  the  Godhead  of  Christ.  Those  who  did 
believe  in  Christ's  Deity,  but  were  otherwise  unor- 
thodox, as  for  example  Quakers,  with  all  those  who 
professing  orthodox  views  yet  disgraced  their 
Christian  profession  by  unseemly  conduct,  were 
likewise  placed  outside  of  protection.  The  new 
Act,  in  a  similar  spirit  with  these  provisions,  "  pro- 
vided that  religious  liberty  be  not  extended  to 
popery  or  prelacy."  Thus  the  limits,  not  overgen- 
erous  of  the  earlier  toleration  measure  had  already 
been  somewhat  encroached  upon  ;  those  now  out- 
side the  pale  of  protection  being  Churchmen  and 
Roman  Catholics,  together  with  the  adherents  of  a 
few  of  the  many  protestant  sects  which  now  began 
to  appear  in  the  religious  world.  All  others  might 
without  fear  of  injury  profess  their  faith  and  prac- 
tice. 

It  was  not  of  course  pretended  by  its  authors  that 
this  was  a  toleration  measure,  any  more  than  the 
authors  of  the  similar  Act  of  1649  claimed  that  it 
was  their  intention  to  give  religious  toleration.  It 
was  rather  of  a  punitive  character.     The  Roman 


MARYLAND    UNDER   PURITAN    RULE.  34I 

Catholics  were  punished  by  it  because  they  were 
Roman  Catholics.  The  Act  provided  that  the  pro- 
fessors of  "  the  popish  religion  could  not  be 
protected  in  the  province,  but  were  to  be  restrained 
in  the  exercise  thereof."  The  Anglicans  were  to 
suffer,  not  because  they  were  Anglicans,  for  Clay- 
borne  himself  was  one,  but  for  their  easy  going 
indifference  to  Clayborne's  interests.  His  successes 
had  in  fact  been  achieved  by  the  Puritans,  the 
Anglicans  having  been  merely  passive  spectators. 
They  had  "not  come  to  the  help  of  the  Lord,  to  the 
help  of  the  Lord  against  the  mighty."  And  so  the 
old  Hebrew  denunciation  which  fell  upon  the 
village  of  Meroz,  for  a  like  passive  indifference  in  a 
critical  period,  was  to  be  their  portion.  Accord- 
ingly into  this  new  toleration  statute  went  a  clause 
which  provided  that  toleration  was  not  to  be 
extended  to  Anglicans. 

Perhaps  it  was  the  fact  that  Clayborne,  at  least 
by  inheritance  and  later  profession,  was  a  Church- 
man himself,  that  the  Churchmen  were  dealt  with 
less  severely  than  the  Roman  Catholics  who  were 
now  declared  to  be  not  only  ecclesiastical,  but 
political  outcasts.  They  had  done  nothing  to 
deserve  this  treatment.  But  then  they  were 
friends,  sympathisers  and  supporters  of   Lord  Bal- 


342  MARYLAND    UNDER    PURITAN    RULE. 

timore.  And  just  then  it  was  a  bad  tiling  to  be 
known  as  a  friend  of  the  proprietar}'.  Thus  it 
came  about  that  Churchmen  and  Roman  Catholics 
were  cast  out  together  and  their  religion  put  under 
a  ban,  and,  in  the  case  of  the  Roman  Catholics, 
even  their  political  manhood  taken  aw^ay. 

Meanwhile  from  his  country  seat  in  Wiltshire  the 
lord  proprietary  had  been  observing  the  signs  of  the 
times,  and  to  his  keen  eye  the  prospects  were  decid- 
edly better  than  they  were  five  years  before,  w^hen 
he  had  decided  to  abandon  his  province.     He  had 
even  hopes  of  conciliating  the  new  ruler  of  England. 
He  was,  in  fact,  looking  forw^ard  to  being  regarded  by 
Cromwell  as  a  staunch  Parliamentarian.     With  his 
own  record  as  a  personal  friend  of  the  deposed  king, 
and  a  Roman  Catholic  to  boot,  to  say   nothing  of 
the  record  of  his  father  as  a  thorough  going  par- 
tizan  of  all  those  very  pretentions  of  the  House  of 
Stuart,  which  were  now  overwhelming  it  with  dis- 
aster, it  was  no  ordinary  feat  of  political  gymnastics 
which   he   proposed    to   perform.     But  slender  as 
were  the  prospects  of  success  Lord  Baltimore  had  no 
option  but  to  attempt  it.     He  had  at  any  rate  noth- 
ing to  lose  by  defeat,  whereas  he  had  everything  to 
gain  by  success,  and  he  decided  to  make  the  attempt. 
In  the  spirit  of  Queen  Esther  at  the  Court  of  Ahas- 


MARYLAND   UNDER    PURITAN    RULE.  343 

ueriis  lie  would  do  what  he  could  even  though 
with  her  he  should  have  to  say  :  "If  I  perish,  I 
perish ! "  But  his  case  was  not  hopeless  by  any 
means.  He  even  felt  himself  strong  enough  to 
strike.  Writing  to  Stone  he  exhorted  him  to  fight 
for  his  province.  Stone  again  obeyed  his  patron, 
and  in  March,  1655,  a  bloody  battle  was  fought  at 
Providence  in  the  enemy's  country.  On  the  proprie- 
tary's side  there  were  about  one  hundred  and  thirty 
men,  for  the  most  part  Roman  Catholics,  who 
appeared  on  the  field  flying  Baltimore's  black  and 
gold  flag  and  shouting  the  battle  cry,  "  Hey  for  St. 
Mary's!"  The  Puritans  numbered  one  hundred  and 
seventy-five,  and  to  them  the  captains  of  two  ships 
lying  in  the  river  had  promised  their  help.  Shout- 
ing the  Puritan  battle  cry  :  "In  the  name  of  God 
fall  on,"  they  rushed  to  the  fight.  Instantly  the 
ships  opened  fire.  The  St.  Mary's  men  had  not 
reckoned  upon  this.  They  were  literally  between 
two  fires,  and  from  the  beginning  there  was  not  the 
slightest  prospect  of  victory  for  them.  But  they 
fought  bravely  notwithstanding.  The  battle,  how- 
ever, was  soon  over,  and  the  Puritans  were  left  in 
possession  of  the  field.  From  one  of  the  two  cap- 
tains who  had  helped  them.  Captain  Heamens  of 
the  Golden  Lion,  we  have  an  account  of  the  battle. 


344  MARYLAND    UNDER    PURITAN    RULE. 

and  it  is  he  who  relates  with  much  satisfaction  how 
they  took  among  the  spoil  "pictures,  crucifixes,  and 
rows  of  beads,  with  great  store  of  reliques  and  trash 
they  trusted  in."  There  were  besides  a  good  many 
bodies  of  their  fellow-men  also  left  on  the  field,  for 
Stone's  force  was  almost  annihilated,  but  of  these 
Captain  Heamens  did  not  take  so  much  account. 
Stone  himself  was  taken  prisoner,  with  all  of  his 
men,  except  four  or  five  who  escaped.  Will  it  be 
believed  that  the  victors  disgraced  themselves  by 
putting  four  of  their  prisoners  of  war  to  death  in 
cold  blood,  and  that  they  were  only  just  restrained 
from  executing  all,  although  they  had  surrendered 
under  promise  of  quarter?  General  confiscation 
ensued,  followed  by  a  strong  petition  to  the  English 
government  urging  it  to  end  Maryland's  existence, 
and  unite  the  province  again  to  Virginia  from 
which  it  ought  never,  in  the  judgment  of  the  Puri- 
tans, to  have  been  separated. 

But  "  the  night  is  long  that  never  finds  the  day." 
The  darkest  hour  is  often  that  before  dawn.  This 
very  battle,  w^hich  seemed  to  crush  out  every  hope 
Baltimore  had  was  but  the  bringing  in  of  a  brighter 
day.  Clayborne  had  now  done  his  worst.  This 
victory  was  his  last  success.  It  was  neither  for  the 
interest  of  IMaryland  lierself,  nor  yet  for  the  interest 


MARYLAND    UNDER   PURITAN    RULE.  345 

of  England,  that  this  state  of  things  should 
continue,  and  Cromwell  put  a  stop  to  it.  Referring 
the  whole  matter  to  the  Committee  of  Trades  and 
Plantations,  that  committee  on  the  i6th  of  Sep- 
tember 1656  decided  wholly  in  favor  of  Ivord  Balti- 
more, with  the  result  that  his  authority  was  re- 
stored, and  he  came,  not  without  hesitation  and  de- 
lay to  receive  him  on  the  part  of  some  of  his  old 
enemies,  into  possession  of  his  province. 

Lord  Baltimore  himself  must  have  marvelled  at 
his  success.  For  it  was  without  doubt,  entirely  due 
to  his  wise  and  statesmanlike  measures  that  his 
colony  was  saved.  In  this  connection  the  "  Reasons 
of  State  concerning  Maryland  in  America,"  bearing 
date  August  1652,  are  extremely  important.  They 
fully  explain  Lord  Baltimore's  ultimate  success. 
No  doubt  in  them  we  read  the  arguments  which  he 
himself    used  before  the    Privy    Council. ^^     That 

^^  In  substance,  Baltimore's  arguments  were  as  follows  : 

1.  The  Commonwealth  would  have  greater  power  over  both 
if  Maryland  and  Virginia  remained  separate. 

2.  In  case  one  was  disloyal  the  other  was  at  hand  as  a  place 
of  refuge. 

3.  There  would  be  a  healthy  rivalry  between  Maryland  and 
Virginia. 

4.  In  Lord  Baltimore's  presence  in  England  they  had  good 
security  for  Maryland's  loyalty. 

5.  Maryland's  dependence  on  Lord  Baltimore  was  more 
economical  for  the  Commonwealth. 


346  MARYLAND    UNDER    PURITAN    RULE. 

Lord  Baltimore  was  no  ordinary  man  this  remark- 
able success  clearly  proves.  iVny  man  who  could 
emerge  with  honor  from  such  a  precarious  and  even 
compromising  position  as  that  in  which  he  had 
stood  commands  our  admiration  and  our  respect. 
Consider  what  he  had  done.  A  Roman  Catholic,  at 
a  time  w^hen  to  be  a  Roman  Catholic  was  to  be 
politically  a  traitor,  and  ecclesiastically  entitled  to 
no  sympathy  at  all;  a  landlord,  whose  property  had 
been  bestowed  iipon  him  by  a  king  whose  own  law- 
lessness and  indifference  to  public  sentiment  had 
cost  him  his  throne  and  his  life ;  a  landlord  too, 
whose  Roman  Catholic  tenants  had  brought  the  ad- 
ministration of  his  vast  estate  everywhere  into  great 
disfavor;  a  landlord,  moreover,  whose  own  record  in 
the  matter  of  his  dealings  with  a  part  of  his  estate 
had  been  by  no  means  free  from  blame  ;  yet  it  is 
this  same  man  who  when  tried  on  a  frivolous  pre- 
text before  the  bar  of  his  peers,  and  by  a  hypocriti- 
cal and  hostile  government,  comes  to  the  front  to 
receive  at  the  hands  of  that  same  government  his 

6.  The  Commonwealth  would  bring  itself  but  contempt  if  it 
rewarded  Lord  Baltimore's  well  known  fidelity  to  its  cause  by- 
doing  anything  prejudicial  to  his  patent,  his  colony  having  been 
faithful  when  all  other  colonies,  New  England  only  excepted, 
had  proved  faithless. 

See  Archives  of  Maryland,  Council,  Pp.  280,  281. 


MARYLAND    UNDER    PURITAN    RULE.  347 

sceptre  of  sovereignty  again.  It  were  a  pit)^  that 
even  on  the  wider  scale  of  a  kingdom  such  talents 
had  not  found  an  outlet.  One  wonders  what  migfht 
have  been  the  history  of  England  herself  if  in  the 
critical  times  of  Charles  I.  or  James  II.,  Cecilius 
Calvert  had  been  summoned  to  the  throne.  That 
the  giving  back  of  the  sceptre  of  Maryland  into  his 
hands  as  the  hands  best  fitted  to  wield  it  was  itself 
an  act  inconsistent  with  the  position  of  a  govern- 
ment that  had  abolished  kingship,  only  increases 
our  admiration  of  him.  Even  Clay  borne  ought  to 
have  congratulated  him  upon  attaining  such  won- 
derful success.  In  the  facility  with  which  he  could 
acknowledge  king  or  lord  protector,  monarchy  or 
commonwealth,  according  to  whichever  should  be 
uppennost.  Lord  Baltimore  has  been  somewhat 
severely  arraigned,  even  by  Protestants,  as  "  that 
aristocratic  Mr.  Facing-both-ways, "  ^"  a  sort  of  fore- 
runner of  the  famous  Vicar  of  Bray.  But  that  versa- 
tile eccelesiastic,  claiming  for  himself  a  certain  con- 
sistency among  all  his  tergiversations,  for  he  would 
live  and  die  the  Vicar  of  Bray,  emphatically  denied 
the  impeachment.  So  with  Lord  Baltimore.  He, 
too,  was  consistency  itself.  Whatever  king  might 
reign,  he  would  be  Lord  Proprietary  of  Maryland. 
^'■^  Prowse,  History  of  Newfoundland,  P.  159. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

LORD  BALTIMORE  ENJOYS  HIS  OWN 
AGAIN. 

1656-1675. 

"And  the  night  shall  be  filled  with  music, 
And  the  cares  that  infest  the  day 
Shall  fold  their  tents,  like  the  Arabs, 
And  as  silently  steal  away." 

— LoNGFEivi^ow  :  "  Day  is  done." 

Not  for  a  full  }'ear  after  the  decision  of  the 
Committee  of  Trades  and  Plantations  in  his  favor 
did  Lord  Baltimore  come  into  undisputed  possession 
of  his  province.  He  obtained  his  rights  in  St. 
Mar}''s  at  once.  But  the  Puritans,  as  if  no  voice 
had  gone  out  against  them,  still  held  possession 
of  the  northern  parts  of  the  Chesapeake,  and  there 
ruled  with  a  strong  hand.  They  retained  also  the 
the  records  and  the  great  seal  of  the  Province. 
Finally,  however,  an  agreement  being  reached 
between  their  leader  and  Lord  Baltimore,  the}' 
yielded  to  the  inevitable,  and  the  rebellion  of  six 
years  standing  came  to  an  end.  From  this  time 
mitil  Lord  Baltimore's  death,  November  30tli,  1675, 


BALTIMORE    ENJOYS   HIS   OWN    AGAIN.        349 

save  for  an  incipient  rebellion  headed  by  his  own 
governor,  Josias  Kendall,  when  Charles  II.  came  to 
the  throne,  there  was  a  long  period  of  rest  which 
Lord  Baltimore  diligently  used  to  push  forward  by 
every  legitimate  means  the  material  advancement 
of  his  colony,  particularly  by  sending  out  new 
emigrants  to  develop  its  untold  resources.  In  this 
he  succeeded  so  well  that  during  the  twenty  years 
which  followed  the  fall  of  the  Puritans  the  popula- 
tion of  Maryland  increased  from  ten  thousand  to 
twenty  thousand. 

The  new  settlers  were  not  all  Church  people. 
''A  considerable  number  of  them  were  Presby- 
terians from  Scotland,  and  here  indeed  was  the 
cradle  of  Presbyterianism  in  the  United  States.^  " 
Scarcely  any  of  the  emigrants  were  of  the  Rom.an 
Church,  it  may  be  that  none  of  them  were — the 
members  of  that  Church  already  in  Maryland 
having  had  too  unpleasant  an  experience  of  the 
country  to  warrant  their  describing  it  to  their 
brethren  as  "  the  land  of  the  sanctuary."  It  thus 
resulted  that  the  Roman  Catholics  were  not  even  at 
this  early  period,  according  to  the  most  generous 
estimate,  more  than  a  fourth  of  the  total  population 
of  the  province. 

^  Allen,  History  of  Maryland,  P.  37. 


350        BALTIMORE    ENJOYS    HIS   OWN    AGAIN. 

But  Romanism  \vas  not  }-et  a  dead  issue.  A 
piece  of  very  decided  interference  with  individual 
libert}',  bordering  perilously  on  actual  persecution, 
occurred  as  late  as  1657  on  the  part  of  a  Jesuit 
father  named  Fitzherbert.  This  priest,  like 
his  brethren,  had  entered  Maryland  under  an 
assumed  name,  being  recorded  on  the  ship's  books 
as  "  Francis  Darby,  Gent." "  Discarding,  almost 
immediately  on  his  arrival,  the  prudence  which  he 
had  showed  himself  to  possess,  it  was  not  long 
before  one  of  the  Marylanders — a  Mr.  Henry 
Coursey — felt  it  his  duty  to  draw  Lord  Baltimore's 
attention  to  his  doings  as  one  who  was  apparently 
bent  on  becoming  a  worthy  successor  of  Mr.  Copley, 
who  had  recently  died,  and  whose  mantle  had 
evidently  been  bequeathed  to  him.  This  gentleman, 
writing  to  Lord  Baltimore,  said,  "  Since  I  wrote  my 
last  to  you,  I  have  received  a  message  from  Mrs. 
Gerrard,  which  is  that  IVIr.  Fitzherbert  hath 
threatened  excomnnmication  to  IMr.  Gerrard, 
because  he  doth  not  bring  to  church  his  wife  and 
children.  And  further,  Mr.  Fitzherbert  said  that  he 
hath  written  home  to  the  heads  of  the  Church  in 
England,  and  that  if  it  be  their  judgment  to  have 
it  so,  he  will  come  with  a  party  and  compel  them. 

^  Neill,  Foimdo'S  of  Maryland,  P.  129. 


BAI.TIMORE    ENJOYS   HIS   OWN    AGAIN.        351 

I  told  Mr.  Fitzherbert  of  it,  about  a  year  since  in 
private,  and  also  that  such  things  were  against  the 
law  of  the  country.  Yet,  his  answer  was,  that  he 
must  be  directed  by  his  conscience,  more  than  by 
the  law  of  any  country.  I  do  not  my  Lord,  trust 
myself  upon  any  business  of  quarrel,  but  it  is  peace 
and  quietness  I  desire.  And  I  hope  your  Lord- 
ship has  no  other  cause  than  to  wish  the  same,  and 
so  I  refer  the  consideration  of  it  to  you.^  " 

On  October  5th,  1658,  Fitzherbert  was  brought 
to  trial  on  the  charge  of  having  threatened  Thomas 
Gerrard  that,  if  he  "did  not  come  and  bring  his  wife 
and  children  to  his  church,  he  would  come  and 
force  them  to  the  church,  contrary  to  a  known  Act 
of  Assembly  for  the  Province."  Fitzherbert  in  his 
defence  pleaded  first  the  "Act  for  Church  Liber- 
ties," holding  that  as  in  Maryland  every  Church 
professing  to  believe  in  God  the  Father,  Son,  and 
Hol}^  Ghost  was  accounted  Holy  Church,  he  had 
full  liberty  to  preach  and  teach  his  creed ;  and,  in 
the  next  place,  that  the  "Act  concerning  Religion" 
guaranteed  him  freedom  from  molestation  in  the 
free  exercise  of  his  religion.  Fitzherbert  was 
acquitted.  But  if  we  may  judge  from  the  evidence 
in  our  possession  neither  the  letter  nor  the  spirit  of 

"•Ibid,  P.  132. 


352        BALTIMORE    ENJOYS    HIS   OWN    AGAIN. 

the  Acts  he  appealed  to  warranted  his  use  of  ph}'s- 
ical  force  to  supplement  his  spiritual  exhortations, 
nor  justified  his  understanding  so  literally  his  posi- 
tion as  a  member  of  a  militant  Church.  Yet  neither 
he,  nor  his  accusers,  strange  to  say,  appear  to  have 
paid  any  attention  to  this  phase  of  the  case,  their 
difficulty  being  to  ascertain  whether  he  had,  or  had 
not,  a  right  to  freely  profess  and  practise  his  relig- 
ion in  Maryland,  and  urge  others  to  profess  and 
practise  it  too.  Properly  enough  his  judges  found 
that  he  had  this  right.  But  Thomas  Gerrard,  his 
wife  and  children  had  the  same  right  also. 

In  connection  with  this  priest  may  be  told  the 
story  of  Mary  Lee,  who  was  put  to  death  as  a  witch. 
This  unfortimate  woman  was  a  passenger  on  the 
same  vessel  that  carried  Mr.  Fitzherbert  to  Mar\- 
land.  On  the  way  thither  the  voyagers  encountered 
very  heavy  weather,  as  doubtless  at  the  outset  the 
superstitious  sailors  predicted  that  they  would, 
owing  to  the  presence  on  board  of  his  reverence. 
The  Jesuit,  not  unreasonably  looking  at  the  case 
from  quite  a  different  standpoint,  subsequently 
reported  that  owing  to  their  vessel  being  storm- 
tossed  for  fully  two  months,  an  opinion  arose  that 
they  were  suffering  from  the  malevolence  of  witches. 


BALTIMORE    ENJOYS    HIS   OWN    AGAIN.        353 

This  idea  getting  abroad  among  the  sailors  they 
forthwith  seized  "  a  little  old  woman  suspected  of 
the  very  heinous  sin  of  sorcery,  and,  guilty  or  not 
guilty,  slew  her."  ^ 

The  whole  story  of  the  tragedy  is  more  fully 
related  in  the  provincial  records  where  Mr.  Henry 
Corbin,  a  young  merchant  from  London,  and  a 
passenger  on  the  same  ship,  describes  the  proceed- 
ings to  the  Governor  and  Council  of  Maryland. 
This  witness  said  that,  two  or  three  weeks  before 
they  reached  the  Chesapeake,  it  was  rumored  among 
the  sailors  that  Mary  Lee,  one  of  the  passengers,  was 
a  witch.  On  the  sailors  asking  the  captain  to  have 
the  woman  tried  upon  this  charge  he  at  first  refused. 
But  as  the  ship  daily  became  more  leaky,  having 
sought  the  advice  of  Corbin  himself,  and  a  Mr. 
Robert  Chipsham,  another  merchant  on  board,  he 
decided  to  allow  an  examination  in  order  to  allay 
the  fears  of  the  seamen.  But  before  this  could  be 
done  two  of  the  seamen,  without  orders,  searched 
her  body,  and  having  found,  as  they  afterwards 
declared,  witch  marks  upon  her,  fastened  her  to  the 
capstan  for  the  night.  But  the  next  morning  the 
marks  "for  the  most  part  were  shrunk  into  her 
body."     Whereupon   the  sailors    asked    Corbin  to 

*  Excerpta  Ex  Diversis  Litteris  Missionarioriim,  1654,  P.  9. 


354        BAI.TIMORE    ENJOYS   HIS   OWN    AGAIN. 

examine  her.  At  this  point  the  woman  confessed 
herself  a  witch.  From  her  own  testimony  there 
was  of  course  no  appeah  Seeing  what  was  coming, 
and  feeling  helpless  to  prevent  it,  but  protesting 
against  their  treatment  of  the  poor  creature  the 
captain  retired  to  his  cabin,  while  the  sailors,  not- 
withstanding his  protest,  took  and  hanged  her  from 
the  yardarm,  afterwards   casting  her  body  into  the 


During  these  latter  years  of  Lord  Baltimore  the 
Anglican  Church  in  the  province  was  in  a  sad 
plight,  a  plight  which  was  not  at  all  improved  by 
the  departure  in  1662  of  Cornwaleys,  the  hero  of 
many  a  battle  for  the  people  and  a  staunch  Church- 
man, and  the  coming  into  office,  as  governor,  of  the 
proprietary's  son  Charles,  wdio,  though  by  no  means 
so  good  a  politician  as  his  father  or  grandfather  had 
been,  and  under  whose  rule  therefore  Church  affairs 
were  not  likely  to  be  greatly  improved.  Had  Lord 
Baltimore  only  seen  his  way  to  persevere  in  his 
original  good  intention  of  providing  the  IMaryland 
Church  people  with  religious  privileges,  the  country 
might  have  become  an  ideal  colony  for  those  days, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  his  own  hands  w^ould  have 
^Neill,  Founders  of  Maryland,  P.  128. 


BALTIMORE    ENJOYS    HIS   OWN    AGAIN.        355 

been  immensely  strengthened.  But  instead  of  doing 
this  he  adopted  a  laissez  faire  policy  which  had, 
as  its  logical  result,  a  state  of  affairs  which  must 
have  sorely  troubled  his  lordship.  By  it  Maryland 
had  become  a  veritable  cave  of  Adullam  in  relie- 
ious  matters.    Of  her  it  might  now  be  truly  said  : — 

Sure,  when  Religion,  did  itself  embark 

And  from  the  East,  would  Westward  steer  its  bark 

It  struck  ;  and  splitting  on  this  unknown  ground, 

Each  one  thence  pillaged  the  first  piece  he  found. 

Hence,  Amsterdam,  Turk,  Christian,  Pagan,  Jew, 

Staple  of  sects,  and  mint  of  schism  grew  ; 

That  bank  of  conscience,  where  not  one,  so  strange 

Opinion,  but  finds  credit  and  exchange.^ 

Of  course  such  a  state  of  things  could  not  fail  to 
produce  serious  discontent  among  those  of  the 
Marylanders  who  regarded  themselves  as  entitled  to 
some  special  consideration  as  men  whose  civil  and 
ecclesiastical  rights  had  been  protected  by  their 
charter.  Moreover  the  appointment  of  a  Roman 
Catholic  governor,  even  though  he  was  the  pro- 
prietary's son,  could  not  but  be  an  exceedingly 
unpopular  measure.  Indeed  to  many  it  would  not 
appear  otherwise  than  as  a  mark  of  bad  faith. 
During  the  critical  times  of  the  Commonwealth 
Lord  Baltimore  had  made  large  capital  out  of  the 
fact  that  his  officers  were  Protestants.  His  enemies 
^Ibid,  P.  154. 


356        BALTIMORE    ENJOYS    HLS   OWN    AGAIN. 

therefore  could  hardly  be  accused  of  being  hyper- 
critical if  they  had  begun  to  regard  the  appoint- 
ments of  those  times  as  a  mere  ruse  to  gain  the 
good  will  of  Cromwell,  and  which  having  served 
its  purpose  was  now  thrown  aside  with  as  little 
ceremony  as  a  man  flings  away  a  last  year's  alma- 
nac. Still  there  was  perhaps  no  justification  for 
this  view.  It  was  only  natural  that  Lord  Balti- 
more should  appoint  his  own  son  to  that  office. 
But  all  the  same  the  appointment  was  not  without 
its  perils,  although  its  evil  results  were  not  to  be 
seen  in  Lord  Baltimore's  own  day.  In  his  son's 
day,  however,  they  fell  as  an  avalanche  falls  on  an 
Alpine  village,  bearing  away  in  its  mad  course 
houses  and  public  buildings  and  men  and  women 
and  little  children,  until  nothing  is  left  to  mark  the 
spot  where  awhile  before  a  beautiful  village,  nest- 
ling quietly  beneath  the  mountain,  had  added  its 
own  lovely  beauty  to  the  picturesque  scene. 


The  time  came  at  length  when  Cecilius  Calvert 
was  to  be  gathered  unto  his  fathers.  For  over  forty 
years  he  had  governed  Maryland  well,  though  not 
without  serious  mistakes.  But  when  one  remem- 
bers that  he  never  saw  jNIaryland,  and  that  the  most 
serious  of  his  mistakes,   his  antagonizing   of   Clay- 


BALTIMORE    ENJOYS   HIS   OWN    AGAIN.        357 

borne,  may  be  said  to  have  been  inherited,  one  is 
rather  inclined  to  marvel,  not  that  he  made  a  few 
mistakes  but  that  he  did  not  make  many  more. 
His  tenure  of  Maryland  fell  in  times  which  were 
most  exacting  in  their  demands  for  true  statesman- 
ship and  farseeing  sagacity,  yet  he  did  not  fall  short 
of  these  requirements.  His  last  years  were  happily 
passed  in  undisputed  possession  of  his  vast  province, 
which  he  was  now  passing  on  to  his  son  and  suc- 
cessor, at  peace  with  itself,  and  immensely  improved 
in  value.  At  last  that  call  had  come  to  which  none 
may  turn  a  deaf  ear.  Doubtless  he  was  ready  to  go. 
He  knew  that  he  had  lived  out  the  alloted  space  of 
human  life,  and  had  filled  a  great  part  in  human 
affairs,  though  he  could  not  have  foreseen  the  future 
greatness  of  the  State  he  was  building.  But  what 
of  all  now ! 

' '  The  boast  of  heraldr}^  the  pomp  of  power, 
And  all  that  beauty,  all  that  wealth  e'er  gave, 
Awaits  alike  the  inevitable  hour. 
The  paths  of  glory  lead  but  to  the  grave." 

That  hour  had  come.  The  invisible  messenger  on 
the  pale  horse  was  at  the  door.  The  greatest  of  the 
Barons  of  Baltimore  had  run  his  course. 

It  is  unfortunate  that  we  possess  so  little  of  any 
thing  which  Cecilius  Baltimore  wrote.  Although 
we  well  know  from  what  we  have,  what  manner  of 


358        BALTIMORE    ENJOYS    HIS   OWN    AGAIN. 

man  he  was.  Yet  had  we  nothing  else  of  his  own 
to  gnide  us,  one  glance  at  his  picture  would  assure 
us  we  w^ere  looking  on  the  face  of  a  man  who  could 
not  fail  to  be  a  power  among  his  fellow^s.  There  is 
no  possibility  of  mistaking  the  meaning  of  those 
features,  or  of  failing  to  learn  the  lessons  they  teach. 
Side  by  side  in  the  rooms  of  the  ^Maryland  Histori- 
cal Society  in  Baltimore  hang  the  portraits  of  five 
out  of  the  six  Barons  w^ho  once  ruled  Maryland. 
Of  them  all  Cecilius'  picture  is  by  far  the  most 
striking.  Those  who  are  familiar  wdth  his  portrait 
as  preserved  in  Bancroft's  History  will  be  apt  to 
think  of  him  as  a  cavalier  whose  face  showed  few 
signs  of  strength  or  greatness,  a  face  betokening 
the  pensive  dreamer  to  whom  the  practical  realities 
and  solemn  duties  of  life  were  altogether  unknown. 
But  looking  at  that  other  picture  we  shall  see  the 
real  man.  No  cavalier  he,  or  a  simple  dreamer 
either,  but  a  Puritan  endowed  with  all  the  sturdy 
independence  and  displaying  all  the  energetic  life 
of  the  Puritans.  Alone  of  his  house  he  is  portrayed 
there  in  no  ga}'  courtier's  dress,  but  in  a  quiet  garb 
such  as  Quakers  wear,  and  in  that  true  lifelike  pic- 
ture we  see  a  face  strong,  determined,  thoughtful — 
one  not  to  be  forgotten.  In  that  gallery  of  portraits 
Cecilius  Calvert  is  manifestly  king.     They  say, 


BALTIMORE    ENJOYS    HIS   OWN    AGAIN.        359 

"  When  beggars  die,  there  are  no  comets  seen; 
The  heavens  themselves  blaze  forth  the  death  of  princes." 

It  may  be  so.  But  without  the  signs  in  the  heavens 
to  bear  witness  to  it  we  should  have  known  the 
greatness  of  Cecilius,  Baron  of  Baltimore. 

After  the  death  of  Cecilius,  Charles  his  son 
naturally  succeeded  to  the  province  over  which  he 
had  been  set  as  governor.^  A  description  of  Mary- 
land at  this  time  from  the  pen  of  one  of  the  clergy, 
the  Rev.  John  Yeo,^  writing  to  the  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury,  gives  a  most  dismal  view  of  the  state 
of  religion,  and  of  the  moral  condition  of  the 
colony.     Maryland,    to  Mr.  Yeo,   was  positively  a 


■^  For  many  years,  indeed  until  quite  recently,  it  has  been 
usual  to  record  Cecilius  as  having  been  succeeded  in  the  Baron}' 
by  one  John,  Lord  Baltimore.  There  was  no  John.  His  exist- 
ence was  a  myth.  His  creation  by  the  historians  has  been  quite 
satisfactorily  explained.  But  an  odd  feature  of  the  error  is  that 
in  Johnson's  Univei'sal  Encyclopedia,  revised  in  1895,  John  still 
keeps  his  place  among  the  Barons  of  Baltimore,  being  enrolled 
as  third  on  the  list.  But  perhaps  there  is  nothing  really  note- 
worthy about  this  trifling  creation  of  an  additional  baron  when 
one  sees  how  much  equally  veracious  information  concerning 
the  real  barons  is  yet  solemnly  retailed  as  sober  truth, 

^  Yeo' s  letter,  written  from  the  "  Patuxant  River,  in  Mary- 
land, 25th  day  of  May,  1676,"  is  given  in  extcnso  by  Anderson, 
Vol.  II,  P.  611.  In  his  letter,  Mr.  Yeo  speaks  of  "Cecilius,  Lord 
Baron  Baltimore  being  dead,  and  Charles,  Lord  Baron  Baltimore 
being  bound  for  England"  that  year,  and  he  suggests  that  the 
Archbishop  should  try  and  obtain  from  their  new  proprietary 
a  suitable  provision  for  the  clergy  of  the  Church. 


360        BALTIMORE    ENJOYS   HIS   OWN    AGAIN. 

very  hot-bed  of  evil,  as  he  tells  the  Archbishop 
that  for  ten  or  twelve  counties,  with  their  twenty 
thousand  souls,  there  were  but  three  clergy  of  the 
Anglican  Church.  Besides  there  was  "noe  care 
taken  or  provision  made,  for  the  building  up 
Christians  in  the  Protestant  Religion,  whereof  not 
only  many  daily  fall  away  either  to  Poper^', 
Quakerism,  or  Fanaticism,  but  also  the  Lord's  day 
is  prophaned,  religion  despised  and  all  notorious 
vices  permitted  ;  so  that  it  has  become  a  Sodom  of 
uncleannesse  and  a  pest-house  of  iniquity." 

But  what  else  could  have  been  expected  in  a  new 
country  among  people  far  removed  from  the 
restraints  of  home  and  religion — when  schools  there 
were  none,  and  when  there  were  only  two  or  three 
churches  widely  separated — served  by  only  as  man}- 
clergy — but  that  God's  day  should  have  been  pro- 
faned, that  evil  of  every  kind  should  have  been 
rampant,  and  that  men  should  have  acted  as 
if  the  God  they  had  serv-ed  on  the  other  side  of  the 
ocean  had  no  power  to  help  or  bless  them  in  Mary- 
land. Happy  indeed  would  it  have  been  for  all  if 
in  that  new  land,  some  voice  had  gone  forth  in 
their  midst  like  that  of  Joshua  of  old  ;  ^'As  for  me 
and  my  house  we  will  serv^e  the  Lord." — happy 
most  of   all    for  the  third  Lord  Baltimore  whose 


BAIvTiMORE    ENJOYS   HIS   OWN    AGAIN.        36 1 

responsibilities  as  proprietary  were  just  beginning. 
But  this  word  was  never  spoken.  And  the  path  of 
the  men  of  Maryland,  and  the  path  of  Maryland's 
proprietary,  began  from  the  first  to  diverge  more 
and  more. 


CHAPTER  XXL 

THE  CHURCH  OF  ENGLAND  ESTAB- 
LISHED AND  ENDOWED. 

1675 — 1692. 

Founded  in  truth  ;  by  blood  of  martyrdom 
Cemented  ;  by  the  hands  of  Wisdom  reared 
In  beauty  of  holiness,  with  ordered  pomp, 
Decent  and  unreproved. 

— Wordsworth. 

Upon  Charles  Calvert  succeeding  to  the  Lord 
Proprietaryship  of  Maryland  he  immediately  pre- 
pared to  return  to  England.  Arriving  there  in  the 
following  year  he  found  that  his  presence  was  very 
timely,  Yeo's  letter  of  the  25th  of  May,  1676,  being 
in  the  hands  of  the  Bishop  of  London — to  whom 
as  the  bishop  interested  in  the  colonies  the  arch- 
bishop had  referred  the  letter — and  by  whom  he 
was  at  once  called  upon  to  meet  its  statements. 
Lord  Baltimore  replied  that  the  Act  of  1649,  con- 
firmed in  1676  tolerated  and  protected  every  sect, 
an  answer  which  was  hardly  to  the  j^oint  as  the 
charge  was  not  that  the  Church  in  Maryland  was 


CHURCH  OF    ENGLAND    ESTABLISHED.         363 

being  persecuted,  but  that  it  had  not  the  means  of 
subsistence.  However,  after  quoting  the  i\ct,  the 
lord  proprietary  addressing  himself  to  that  griev- 
ance, informed  the  bishop  that  "four  ministers  of 
the  Church  of  England  were  in  possession  of  plan- 
tations which  offered  them  a  decent  subsistence." 
He  was,  moreover,  under  the  impression  that  in  an 
Assembly,  such  as  that  of  Maryland,  it  v/ould  be 
extremely  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  induce  it 
to  consent  to  a  lav/  that  should  oblige  any  sect  to 
maintain  other  ministers  than  its  own."  It  will 
be  here  observed  from  his  use  of  the  word  sect  that 
Charles  was  not  acquainted  with  the  position  of  the 
Church  in  Maryland  as  an  integral  portion  of  the 
Church  of  England. 

The  matter  came  finally  before  the  Privy  Coun- 
cil which  decided  that  Lord  Baltimore's  position 
was  not  v/ell  taken.  The  Council  probably 
reminded  him  of  the  conditions  of  his  charter,  and 
of  the  duties  it  imposed  upon  him,  bidding  him 
not  to  forget  that  to  the  services  of  their  national 
Church  his  Maryland  tenants  were  justly  entitled. 
It  was  therefore  fitting  that  he  should  see  to  it  that 
they  w^ere  not  left  as  sheep  without  a  shepherd. 
Nor  was  this  so  strange  a  predicament  for  a  Roman 
Catholic  proprietary  to  find  himself  in  as  some  hr.^;e 


364        CHURCH    OF    ENGLAND    ESTABLISHED. 

thought/  His  charter  had  created  that  obligation 
for  him  ;  but  if  he  found  it  burdensome  to  his  con- 
science to  comply  with  its  provisions,  there  was  an 
easy  way  out  of  the  predicament.  He  could  readily 
throw  it  up,  and  refuse  any  longer  to  hold  a  position 
which  he  deemed  incompatible  with  his  profession 
of  Roman  Catholicism.  As  long  as  he  did  not 
choose  to  avail  himself  of  this  privilege,  the  Privy 
Council  was  abundantly  justified  in  insisting  that 
"he  should  propose  some  means  for  the  support  of 
a  competent  number"  of  the  clergy  of  the  English 
Church  in  that  province  from  which  he  was  drawing 
a  princely  income  as  a  gift  from  the  English 
Crown. 

Presently  Charles  returned  from  England,  but  on 
his  arrival  in  Maryland  he  forgot  all  about  the 
ruling  of  the  Privy  Council,  and  the  warning  he 
had  received.  At  any  rate,  with  the  exception  of 
passing  laws  for  the  suppression  of  vice,  and  the 
better  obser\ance  of  Sunday,  he  did  nothing  at  all. 
He  would  have  acted  with  more  wisdom  if  he  had 
done  what  was  required  of  him.  But  the  man  who 
could  cut  off  his  own  son's  annual  allowance,  and 
leave  him  dependent  upon  charity,"  merely  because 

^  Fisher,  Men,  Womert  and  Manners,  VoL  II,  P.  195. 

'^  Benedict    Leonard    Calvert    abjured    Roman    Catholicism, 


CHURCH    OF   ENGI.AND    ESTABLISHED.        365 

he  had  become  an  Anglican,  was  not  likely  to  be 
found  providing  clergy  for  his  Anglican  tenants, 
though  his  not  doing  so  would  be  a  distinct  breach 
of  trust.  Rather  was  he  more  likely  to  be  found 
giving  to  his  co-religionists  whatever  advantages 
his  official  position  enabled  him  to  give.  We  shall 
not  therefore  be  at  all  surprised  to  find  that  soon 
after  he  had  been  accused  of  neglecting  the  spir- 
itual interests  of  the  Church  people  committed  to 
his  care,  it  was  alleged  he  was  showing  undue  par- 
tiality to  Roman  Catholics.  There  seems  to  have 
been  no  great  reason  for  the  accusation,  neverthe- 
less there  was  enough  truth  in  it — so  the  English 
Government  considered — to  justify,  and  in  fact  to 
require,  its  taking  the  extreme  position  of  ordering 
that  all  public  offices  in  Maryland  should  be  given 
to  Protestants,  "  the  feeling  that  the  country  was 
being  governed  in  the  interest  of  a  small  coterie  of 
papists  having  rapidly  increased."^ 

The  third  Lord  Baltimore  was  a  decidedly  differ- 

*'  much  to  the  wrath  and  disgust  of  his  aged  father,  who  at  once 
withdrew  his  annual  allowance  of  four  hundred  and  fifty  pounds. 
Benedict  was  obliged  to  apply  to  the  Crown  for  a  pension,  which 
was  granted  by  Anne  and  continued  by  George  I.  until  on 
February  20,  17 15,  the  situation  was  completely  changed  by  the 
father's  death."  Old  Virginia  and  Her  Neighbors,  Fiske,  Vol. 
II,  P.  168. 
^  Fiske,  Old  Virginia  and  Her  Neighbors,  Vol.  II,  P.  155. 


366        CHURCH    OF    ENGLAND    ESTABLISHED. 

ent  man  from  his  father.  Ceciliiis  Calvert  had 
contrived  to  keep  on  good  terms  at  Court  and  to 
receive  judgment  after  judgment  in  his  favor.  His 
son,  not  having  his  father's  gifts,  found  little  pleas- 
ure in  king's  courts.  He  loved  the  plain  life  of  a 
colonist  in  Maryland  infinitely  better  than  he  loved 
the  fashionable  life  of  an  English  nobleman.  But 
however  soothing  this  may  be  to  the  feelings  of  the 
patriotic  Marylander  it  was  not  the  best  thing  for 
lyord  Baltimore.  Possibl}^  that  old  refusal  to  per- 
mit Cecilius  to  go  out  with  the  first  expedition  had 
been  an  unalloyed  blessing.  It  had  saved  the  sec- 
ond lord  proprietary  from  being  a  colonist  only. 
It  had  kept  him  in  touch  with  the  rulers  in  Church 
and  State.  With  these  officials  Charles,  the  third 
Lord  Baltimore,  had  no  dealings  at  all,  and  in  tlie 
end  he  lost  Maryland. 

In  the  meantime  evidence  of  liis  continued 
neglect  of  Church  people  accumulated,  such  at 
least  being  the  import  of  a  letter  from  a  devout 
Churchwoman  to  the  iVrchbishop  of  Canterbury', 
enclosing  a  petition  "To  the  IMost  Reverend  the 
Archbishops  and  the  rest  of  the  Right  Reverend 
the  Bishops,  on  behalf  of  herself  and  others,  his 
Majesty's  subjects,  inhabitants  of  the  Province  of 
Maryland,  showing  that  the  Province  was  without 


CHURCH   OF   ENGLAND    ESTABLISHED.         367 

a  church  or  any  settled  ministr}',  to  the  great  grief 
of  all  his  Majesty's  loyal  subjects  there,  and  praying 
his  Majesty  that  a  certain  parcel  of  tobacco,  of  one 
hundred  hogsheads  or  thereabouts,  of  the  growth 
or  product  of  the  said  Province,  may  be  custom 
free,  for  and  towards  the  maintenance  of  an  ortho- 
dox divine,  at  Calvert  Town,  in  the  said  Province, 
or  otherwise  allow  maintenance  for  a  minister 
there."  Praying  furthermore  that  their  "  Lord- 
ships would  vouchsafe  to  contribute  towards  the 
building  of  a  church  at  Calvert  Town."  ^  Shortly 
after  this  petition  was  received,  on  the  29th  of  Sep- 
tember, 1685,  the  Reverend  Paul  Bertrand  sailed  to 
Maryland."^ 

Charles  Calvert  never  probably  understood  the 
difficulties  of  the  Maryland  Churchmen.  He  went 
on  his  blundering  way,  his  life  very  much  like  the 
swirl  of  a  bat  in  the  dusk,  profiting  neither  by  past 
mistakes,  nor  friendly  vv-arnings  and  advice.  But 
he  could  not  help  realizing  that  his  proprietary  ship 
was  not  a  distinct  success.  And  so  when  the  death 
of  Charles  II.  came  in  1685,  followed  by  the  acces- 
sion of  James  II.,  he  probabl}^  regarded  the  change 
as    a    godsend    in    his    misfortunes.     James,    as    a 

*  Neili,  Founders  of  Maryland^  Pp.  160-163. 
'^Ibid,  P.  163. 


368        CHURCH   OF   ENGLAND   ESTABLISHED. 

Roman  Catholic  could  surely  understand  him  and 
his  position  better,  and  would  sympathize  with  him 
more  readily,  than  the  merry  hearted  monarch  had 
done  who  seemed  but  a  trifler  at  the  best.  But, 
alas,  for  human  hopes  and  expectations.  If  Charles 
II.  had  chastised  him  with  whips  James  II.  would 
chastise  him  w4th  scorpions.  Barely  had  the  new 
king  been  seated  on  his  throne  ere  he  commenced 
proceedings  to  annul  all  the  colonial  charters  then 
in  existence.  But  as  the  Maryland  Charter  was 
unlike  every  other,  in  that  it  was  held  by  a  Roman 
Catholic,  Baltimore  might  reasonably  have  con- 
sidered his  interests  quite  safe,  James  being  the 
only  Roman  Catholic  king  who  had  ever  sat  upon 
the  English  throne.'^  In  this  hope  Lord  Balti- 
more was  to  experience  grievous  disappointment. 
James  viewed  Baltimore's  rights  with  even  greater 
hostility  than  Charles  had  ever  done,  and  in  his 
attack  on  the  colonies  his  special  animus  was 
directed  against  Maryland.  The  virulence  of  his 
attack  was  inspired  and  directed  by  Father  Petre, 

^  Before  Elizabeth's  reign  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  did  not 
exist  in  England,  its  presence  there  being  due  to  the  act  of  Pius 
V.  in  1570,  who,  in  that  year,  sent  the  second  Italian  Mission 
to  'evangelize'  England.  Thus  it  was  that  Queen  Mary,  although 
in  full  sympathy  with  the  Bishop  of  Rome,  and  acting  under 
his  orders,  was  a  member  of  the  English  National  Church. 


CHURCH   OF   ENGLAND    ESTABLISHED.         369 

the  king's  Jesuit  confessor,  who  was  "  the  principal 
instrument  in  seeking  to  deprive  his  Lordship  of 
his  government."  ^  It  was  not  an  open  enemy  that 
did  Lord  Baltimore  this  dishonor.  But  there  were 
reasons  for  it. 

Maryland  had  made  a  record  for  a  long  and 
determined  opposition  to  the  Jesuit  society.  Had 
it  not  been  for  the  temporizing  policy,  first  of 
Cecilius  and  now,  though  to  a  much  lesser  extent, 
of  his  son,  Maryland  might  have  been  a  Roman  Cath- 
olic land.  The  society's  agents  had  done  and  suffered 
much  to  bring  that  about,  but  just  when  they  had 
reached  forth  their  hands  to  pluck  the  fruit  of 
their  labors  and  their  self-denial,  they  were  thwarted 
by  the  lord  proprietary  himself.  To  use  their  own 
words :  "  Even  occasions  of  suffering  had  not 
been  wanting  from  those  from  whom  rather  it  was 
proper  to  expect  aid  and  protection."  ^  Hence  the 
special  hatred  of  Maryland  at  the  English  Court. 
In  the  judgment  of  the  king  and  his  Jesuit  con- 
fessor, Maryland  should  be  punished  for  the  record 
she  had  made  for  herself.  But  ere  the  proceedings 
had  well  begun  which,  were  to  terminate  in  the 
ending  of  Baltimore's  rule  the  doughty  James  had 

^  Hawks,  P.  57. 

8  Md.  Hist.  Soc,  F.  P.  No.  7,  Letters  1642,  P.  88. 


3/0        CHURCH    OF    ENGLAND    ESTABLISHED. 

fled  the  kingdom,  having  no  desire  to  provide  the 
world  with  the  spectacle  of  another  royal  execu- 
tion. 

For  a  time  Charles  Baltimore,  who  had  been  in 
England  since  James'  accession,  breathed  more 
freely,  though  he  realized  that  the  flight  of 
King  James  meant  the  coming  of  William  of 
Orange.  Indeed,  with  something  of  the  old  energy 
and  tact  which  his  father  had  been  wont  to  display, 
he  hastened  to  submit  himself  to  the  new 
ruler  of  England,  and  promptly  sent  a  message  to 
announce  his  action  to  the  authorities  of  his 
province.  Unfortunately  the  messenger  died  on  the 
wa}',  and  as  neither  his  commands,  nor  even  any 
information  as  to  his  attitude  towards  the  new 
government  reached  Maryland,  his  officers  were 
uncertain  what  course  to  pursue.  Consequently 
while  others  colonies  north  and  south  were  raising 
tlie  Orange  standard  Maryland  took  no  part  in  the 
demonstration,  and  made  no  sign. 

This  circumstance  was  just  what  the  enemies  of 
the  proprietary  desired.  His  religion  had  alwa}s 
been  a  source  of  irritation  to  them,  and  now  more 
than  ever  in  view  of  King  James'  recent  perform- 
ance. Somehow  or  other  a  story  was  started  to 
the  effect  that  the  Roman    Catholics,  with   the  aid 


CHURCH   OF   ENGLAND    ESTABLISHED.         37 1 

of  the  Indians,  were  about  to  massacre  the  Protes- 
tants. It  was  a  foolish  tale,  without  a  particle  of 
truth,  but  it  gave  a  demagogue  named  John  Coode, 
a  man  of  profligate  character,  but  who,  notwith- 
standing his  antecedents,  had  actually  obtained, 
ordination  during  a  visit  to  England,  an  excuse  to 
found  an  "  Association  to  protect  the  Protestant 
religion  and  the  sovereignty  of  King  William  and 
Queen  Mary,"  and  to  organize  a  band  of  armed 
men  with  a  view  to  seizing  the  government  at 
St.  Mary's.  This  done  he  published  a  state- 
ment impeaching  the  rule  of  the  lord  proprietary. 
In  that  document  he  asserted  that  Baltimore  "  had 
been  building  up  his  own  power  in  the  colony  at 
the  expense  of  the  sovereignty  of  the  Crown,  and 
to  name  or  own  the  king's  power  was  sufficient  to 
incur  the  frown  of  his  lordship.  He  had  affronted 
the  king's  officers  of  customs,  had  forcibl}'  detained 
one  of  them,  and  another  one  had  been  murdered 
by  an  Irish  papist.  He  had  oppressed  the  people, 
established  popish  idolatry  instead  of  the  churches 
and  chapels  of  the  ecclesiastical  laws  of  England, 
given  the  most  fertile  lands  to  Romish  churches 
and  forfeited  the  lands  of  the  Protestant  ministry. 
He  had  vetoed  the  best  acts  passed  by  the  assembly, 
disposed  of  Protestant  orphans  to  be  brought  up  in 


372        CHURCH    OF   ENGLAND    ESTABLISHED. 

Romish  superstition,  separated  a  young  woman 
from  her  husband,  and  committed  her  to  the  custody 
of  a  papist,  imposed  excessive  fees,  seized  Protes- 
tants in  their  houses  by  armed  forces  of  papists,  and 
committed  them  to  prison  without  warrant,  allowed 
no  redress  for  outrages  and  murders  committed  by 
Catholics,  and  used  every  means  to  divert  the 
obedience  of  the  people  from  the  new  Protestant 
king  and  queen." 

"  His  agents,  the  priests  and  Jesuits,"  the  declara- 
tion continued,  "  had  used  solemn  masses  and 
prayers  for  the  success  of  the  popish  forces  in 
Ireland  and  the  French  designs  against  England, 
and  on  every  side  could  be  heard  protestations 
against  their  majesties  right  to  the  crown,  and 
vilification  of  their  persons.  For  these  reasons  the 
people  of  Maryland  had  taken  up  arms  to  vindicate 
and  assert  the  sovereignty  of  King  William,  and 
to  defend  the  Protestant  religion."  ^ 

How  far  the  charges  w^ere  well  founded  will  ever 
be  a  question.  They  were  doubtless  grossly  exag- 
gerated. But  that  there  was  a  solid  substratum 
of  truth  in  them  we  cannot  doubt,  the  mass  of  the 
people   being   imquestionably   with    Coode.     It  is 

^  Fisher,   Meti,    IVomen  and  Manners,   VoL  II,  P.  199.     See 
also  Hawks,  P.  65,  Chalmers,  P.  332. 


CHURCH    OF   ENGLAND    ESTABUSHKD.         2>7 2> 

unfortunate  that  an  investigation  into  the  truth 
of  these  charges,  which  was  to  have  been  held 
by  the  Privy  Council,  and  which  indeed  was 
actually  begun,  was  never  completed.  King  Wil- 
liam, by  an  arbitrary  exercise  of  power,  quashed  the 
proceedings,  and  took  away  Ivord  Baltimore's  posi- 
tion and  powers  as  Lord  Proprietary  of  Maryland, 
leaving  him,  however,  in  possession  of  his  rents  and 
revenues,  and  of  the  ownership  of  the  lands  which 
properly  belonged  to  him.  Eventually  the  province 
did  come  again  into  the  possession  of  the  Barons  of 
Baltimore,  but  it  was  not  until  171 5,  twenty-five 
years  afterwards,  when  Charles  was  dead,  and  when 
the  family  had  returned  to  the  faith  of  their  fore- 
fathers. 

Following  upon  this  arbitrary  act  of  deprivation 
the  king  appointed  Sir  Lionel  Copley  as  royal 
governor  in  place  of  the  deposed  proprietary.  The 
new  governor  at  once  convened  the  Legislature, 
which  drew  up  a  loyal  address  thanking  the  king 
and  queen  for  having  delivered  them  "  from  the 
arbitrary  will  and  pleasure  of  a  tyrannical  popish 
government  under  which  they  had  so  long  groaned." 
In  perfect  accord  with  this,  they  next  recognized, 
by  the  first  Act  which  they  passed,  the  royal  author- 
ity of  William  and  Mary.     Their  second  measure 


374        CHURCH   OF   ENGLAND   ESTABLISHED. 

was,  "  An  Act  for  the  service  of  Almighty  God  and 
the  service  of  the  Protestant  religion."  By  this 
law  it  was  declared  that  the  Church  of  England 
in  the  province  should  have  and  enjoy  all  her 
rights,  liberties  and  franchises,  wholly  inviolable, 
as  they  then  were,  or  thereafter  should  be,  estab- 
lished by  law  ;  that  the  several  counties  should  be 
laid  out  into  parishes  ;  that  the  free-holders  of  each 
parish  should  meet  and  appoint  six  vestrymen  ; 
that  a  tax  of  forty  pounds  of  tobacco  should  be  laid 
on  each  taxable  person  in  the  province;  that  the 
sheriff  should  collect  the  same  ;  and  that  the  ves- 
tries of  each  'parish  should  apply  the  proceeds  of 
this  tax  to  tlie  support  of  ministers,  or  in  the  event 
of  there  being  no  ministers,  to  the  building  or  the 
necessary  repairs  of  the  church,  or  other  pious  uses 
in  their  discretion.  The  vestries  were  next  made 
bodies  corporate  to  receive  and  hold  property,  and 
the  ten  counties  of  Maryland  were  divided  into 
thirty-one  parishes,  as  follows :  The  County  of  St. 
Mary  into  the  parishes  of  William  and  Mar\',  and 
King  and  Queen.  Calvert  County  into  Christ 
Church,  All  Saints',  St.  Paul's  and  All  Faith. 
Charles  County  into  William  and  IMary,  Port 
Tobacco,  Nan-je-moy  and  Piscataway.  Anne 
Arundel  County  into  Herring  Creek,  South  River, 


CHURCH   OF   ENGLAND   ESTABI.ISHED.        375 

Middle  Neck  and  Broad  Neck  parishes.  Baltimore 
County  into  St.  Paul's,  St.  Andrew's,  St.  George's 
and  St.  John's.  Cecil  County  into  South  Sassafras 
and  North  Sassafras.  Kent  County  into  Kent  Island 
and  St.  Paul's.  Talbot  County  into  St.  Peter's,  St. 
Michael's  and  St.  Paul's.  Dorchester  County  into 
Great  Choptank  and  Dorchester.  Somerset  County 
into  Somerset,  Coventry,  Stepney  and  Snow  Hill 
parishes.  ^° 

Thus  was  the  Church  of  England  established 
and  endowed.  It  was  not  of  course  a  popular 
measure.  The  Roman  Catholics  keenly  resented 
it.  So  did  the  Puritans, — now  entirely  separated 
from  the  Church — ^perhaps  even  more  keenly  still. 
They  resented  both  the  establishment  of  England's 
National  Church,  and  the  endowment  to  which 
they,  in  common  with  its  own  sons,  were  called 
upon  to  pay  forty  pounds  of  tobacco  per  man, 
a  provision  which  was  not  entirely  popular  with 
those  most  interested  in  it,  the  clergymen  them- 
selves, for  there  was  nothing  in  the  Act  to  stipulate 
that  the  tobacco  paid  should  be  of  a  certain  quality. 
Hence  the  parson  was  not  uncommonly  paid  in 
unmarketable  stuff,  which  could  neither  be  sold  nor 
used. 

^°  Return  made  to  Governor  and  Council.     See  Hawks,  P.  73. 


2)^6        CHURCH    OF    ENGLAND    ESTABLISHED. 

Historians  frequently  mistake  the  character  of 
this  act  of  establishment.  Regarding  it  as  a  piece 
of  intolerance  towards  other  bodies  of  Christians 
they  speak  of  it  as  an  act  of  oppression.  But  it 
should  be  born  in  mind  that  it  really  did  nothing 
more  than  make  Maryland  in  Church  matters  what 
all  along  she  had  legally  been  by  her  charter,  a  part 
of  England.  It  merely  enforced  the  teaching  of 
the  charter.  Save  in  the  matter  of  the  poll  tax  it 
put  the  Puritan  and  the  Romanist  in  no  worse 
position  than  they  were  in  England.  And  of  this 
none  had  much  right  to  complain  since  all  religious 
parties  then  believed  in  Church  establishments; 
thoueh  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  establishment 
of  the  Church  in  Maryland  was  of  a  more  definite 
and  formal  character  than  that  of  the  Church  in 
England.  In  England  owing  to  the  fact  that  the 
Church  had  existed  before  the  state,  and  had  in 
reality  established  the  state,  such  an  Act  as  that 
which  passed  in  Maryland  would  have  been  an 
anachronism  and  an  absurdity. 

It  is  to  this  action  of  the  royal  Governor  and  the 
Legislature  of  Maryland  in  1692,  that  ]\Iar}'land 
today  presents  the  spectacle,  almost  unique  in 
America,  of  the  Episcopal  Church  strong  in  the 
country  districts.     I  was  myself  once  Rector  of  one 


CHURCH   OF    ENGLAND    ESTABLISHED.         2)11 

of  Maryland's  country  parishes,  a  parish  which 
covered  an  area  of  some  sixty  square  miles.  It  was 
one  of  these  old  colonial  parishes  which  owed  its 
existence  to  the  Act  of  1692.  It  had  its  church 
erected  in  conformity  with  the  requirements  of  that 
Act.  Within  its  boundaries  there  was  not  then, 
and  there  is  not  now,  another  resident  minister  of 
any  denomination,  and  there  were  over  two 
hundred  communicants.  The  strange  delusion  that 
the  Roman  Catholic  Church  is  altogether  in  the 
ascendency  in  Maryland  can  readily  be  dispelled  by 
a  visit  to  just  such  a  parish  as  this  with  its  own 
rector,  and  even  with  its  colored  curate  to  attend 
to  the  people  of  the  colored  race. 

St  ]\Iary's  City  had  now  seen  its  day.  It  had 
become  exceedingly  inconvenient,  as  the  capital  of 
the  country,  situated  as  it  was  at  the  extreme  end 
of  the  province.  And  so  the  Assembly  decided 
to  sit  henceforth  at  Annapolis.  St.  Mary's  fought 
bravely  against  the  change,  for  she  knew  it  meant 
death  to  her.  But  opposition  was  useless.  Nothing 
that  her  people  could  do  availed  to  alter  the 
mind  of  the  new  authorities.  St.  Mary's  had 
stood  for  the  old  state  of  things  ;  Annapolis  was  to 
stand  for  a  new  and  better  state.  Accordingly  the 
change  was  made  and  St.  INIary's  ceased  forever  to 


2,^]^        CHURCH   OF   ENGLAND    ESTABLISHED. 

be  of  any  importance  save  to  the  antiquarian  and 
to  the  historian.  Today  a  few  scattered  homes, 
so  far  apart  as  scarcely  to  be  visible  two  at  a  time 
having  in  their  midst  a  lovely  church  and  a  school 
for  girls,  state-supported,  constitute  St.  Mary's  City. 
In  the  presence  of  the  school  the  historian  will 
love  to  see  a  beautiful  appropriateness.  It  was  to 
St.  Mary's  that  a  daughter  of  the  Emperor  of  the 
Piscataway  Indians  was  taken  by  Leonard  Calvert, 
and  his  kinswoman  Margaret  Brent,  for  education." 
But  its  inaccessibility  necessarily  militates  sadly  in 
many  different  ways  against  its  real  usefulness. 

So  entirely  have  the  former  glories  of  St.  Mary's 
departed  and  its  importance  dwindled  away,  that  as 
the  steamers,  plying  between  Washington  and  Bal- 
timore, steam  up  the  St.  Mary's  River  to  land 
freight  or  passengers  at  the  site  of  the  ancient  capi- 
tal, the  boatmen  simply  announce  that  the  steamer 
is  at  '  Brume's  Landing.'  That  is  all.  No  city,  no 
village,  only  a  wharf,  a  landing  place,  nothing 
more.  There  is  something  pathetic  in  this  entire 
passing  away  of  a  place,  which  though  never  great 
and  populous,  was  yet  for  sixty  years  the  centre  of 
the  political  and  ecclesiastical  life  of  Maryland. 
But  sic  transit  gloria  mundi.     Words  these  which 

^^  "  ^  Scion  of  Nobility,'"  William  Hande  Browne. 


CHURCH   OF   ENGLAND    ESTABLISHED.        379 

have  a  peculiar  interest  to  our  Roman  Catholic 
brethren  throughout  the  world.  For  at  his  coro- 
nation every  Bishop  of  Rome,  as  the  thin  ashes 
of  a  handful  of  lighted  flax  fall  at  his  feet,  hears 
them  spoken  with  full  and  sonorous  voice  by  one 
who  bids  him  well  remember  how  soon  all  earthly 
glory  fades.  Many  among  us  will  perhaps  see 
much  to  justify  the  appropriation  of  these  same 
words  to  conclude  a  sketch  of  Religion  under  the 
Barons  of  Baltimore,  with  special  reference  to  the 
claim,  universally  made,  and  hitherto  all  too 
generously  allowed  as  just  and  right,  that  the 
Roman  Church  once  proclaimed  Religious  Tolera- 
tion in  Maryland. 


Finis. 


38i 


INDEX. 


ACT  for  Church  I^iberties,  233-4.  Es- 
tablishes Roman  Catholic  Church, 
236-8.  At  variance  with  Magna 
Charta  and  the  Maryland  Charter, 
239.  .  .   . 

Act  Concerning  Religion  known 
as  the  "Toleration  Act"  passed 
1549,  318.  Confirmed  by  the  Pro- 
prietary the  following  year,  318. 

Act  of  Toleration  a  rule  of  intol- 
erance, 319. 

Act  Concerning  Religion,  passed 
1634,  repeals  previous  Act,  339. 

Adventurers  to  Maryland  :— In- 
fluenced by  mundane  considera- 
tions, 134-140.  Were  mostly  mem- 
bers of  the  English  Church,  142-3. 
Sailed  1633,  H^-  Arrived  in  Mary- 
land, Feast  of  the  Annunciation, 
1634,  167. 

Apostle  of  the  Indians  of  Mary- 
land, Father  White,  196. 

Assembly,  House  of:  —  Working 
of  the  first  I^egislature,  231.  Rec- 
ognized royal  authority  of  Wil- 
liam and  Mary,  373.  Established 
Church  of  England,  374.  Decided 
to  remov^to  Annapolis,  377. 

AvALON,  Charter  of,  37-57.  Issued 
to  Sir  George  Calvert,  1623,  50. 
Modelled  on  the  feudal  palatines 
of  Durham,  51. 


Bancroft  withdraws  the  statement 

of  his  first  edition,  15-16. 
Bertrand,    Rev.    Paul,    sailed    to 

Maryland  A.  D.  1685,  369, 
Brooke   leads    an    expedition    of 

Anglican  immigrants,  316. 
BuRNAP  admits    that    the  Act  for 

Church  I^iberties  established  the 

Roman  Catholic  Church,  237. 


Calvert,  Sir  George  :— First  Bar- 
on of  Baltimore,  1-7.  Preacher  of 
religious  toleration  a  fiction,  11. 
Buys  Vaughan's  estates  in  New- 
foundland, 38-39.  Charter  of  Ava- 
lon  issued  to  him  1623,  50.  Visited 
Newfoundland  1627,  61.  Visited 
Newfoundland  1628,  63.  I,eaves 
Newfoundland  for  Virginia,  77. 
Refuses  to  take  the  Oath  of  Su- 
premacy, 81.  Returns  to  England, 
92.  Obtains  charter  for  territory 
south  of  Virginia,  98.  Charter 
annulled,  98.  Secures  new  charter 
for  territory  north  of  Virginia,  99. 
Dies,  loi.  True  place  in  history, 
107. 

Calvert,  Cecilius  :  —Grantee  of 
charter.  III.  Never  visited  Mary- 
land, 121-129-130.  Offers  special 
inducements  to  adventurers,  134- 
140.  Demands  removal  of  the 
JesuitSj  262.  Petitions  Sacred  Con- 
gregation for  removal  of  the  Je- 
suits, 262.  Issues  new  Conditions 
of  Plantation,  265.  Makes  con- 
cordat with  the  Jesuits,  269.  Sum- 
moned before  the  House  of  I^ords, 
277.  Makes  overtures  to  the  Puri- 
tans of  Massachusetts.  281.  I^etter 
to  his  brother  I^eonard,  A.  D.  1642, 
283-9.  Gives  up  Maryland  as  lost, 
302.  Determines  to  make  Mary- 
land Protestant,  310.  Requires 
Governor  Stone  not  to  oppress 
Roman  Catholics,  312-3.  Confirms, 
1650,  Act  Concerning  Religion, 
318.  Restored  to  his  authority  by 
by  Commonwealth,  345.  Dies  1675, 
357.  His  place  in  Maryland  His- 
tory, 358. 

Calvert,  Charles  :— Son  of  Cecil- 
ius succeeds  to  his  father's  titles, 
359.  Reminded  by  Privy  Council 
of  the  conditions  of  his  charter, 


382 


INDEX. 


363.  Alleged  to  be  showing  nndue 
partiality  to  Roman  Catholics,  365. 
Submits  to  William  of  Orange,  370. 

Calvert,  I,eonard  :— Founds  the 
Province  of  Mar>'land,  1-6.  Enters 
into  communication  with  Indians, 
173.  Rebuked  by  his  brother  Ce- 
cilius  for  granting  additional 
lands  to  the  Jesuits.  287-8.  Visits 
England,  291.  Arrives  in  Mary- 
land 1644,  296.  His  authority  m 
Marj^and  ceased,  296.  Regains 
St.  Mary's  by  the  help  of  Virgin- 
ians, 303.     Dies  A.  D.  1647,  305- 

Charles,  Second  proclaimed  King 
by  acting  Governor,  335. 

CooDE,  John  :  —  Impeaches  the 
rule  of  the  lyOrd  Proprietary-  1689, 

Churches  to  be  consecrated  ac- 
cording to  ecclesiastical  laws  of 
England,  122-7. 

Church  :— The  first  church  build- 
ing erected  in  Maryland,  on  Kent 
Island,  175. 

Church  of  England  men  build  a 
church  at  St.  Mary's,  197.  Build  a 
church  at  Poplar  Hill,  199.  Min- 
istered to  by  clergj'  from  Kent 
Island  and  Virginia,  202-3.  Estab- 
lished in  Marjdand,  not  a  popular 
measure,  375. 

Clayborne,  William  :—  Secretary 
to  the  State  of  Virginia,  92.  Sailed 
to  England  when  Sir  George  Cal- 
vert went  to  England  from  Vir- 
ginia, 92.  Secured  revocation  of 
Sir  George  Calvert's  charter  for 
territory  south  of  Virginia,  98. 
Sails  for  Virginia,  98.  Notified 
by  I^eonard  Calvert  that  he  must 
relinquish  all  dependence  upon 
Virginia,  180.  His  contention  with 
I^ord  Baltimore,  180.  Ends  disas- 
trously, 183.  Makes  war  on  his 
ancient  foe,  295.  Gains  posses- 
sion of  Kent  Island,  296.  Estab- 
lishes his  authority  in  St.  Marj^'s 
City,  296.  Fosters  strife  at  Provi- 
dence, 333.  Appointed  commi.s- 
sioner  for  governing  Che.sapeake 
Bay,  336.  Sets  out  for  Maryland 
1651,  337.  And  his  fellow  commis- 
sioners depose  Governor  Stone 
and  set  up  a  new  government,  337. 
Victorious  at  Providence,  343. 
Crushed  by  decision  of  Trades 
and  Plantations,  345. 

Cromwell  refers  Maryland  mat- 
ters to  committee  of  Trades  and 
Plantations,  345. 


Copley,  Thomas,  arrives  in  Mary- 
land 1637,  203.  The  evil  genius  of 
ISIaryland,  204.  Claims  6,000  acres 
for  sending  out  adventurers,  208. 
Commences  aggressive  work,  209. 
Excludes  Anglicans  from  political 
office,  212.  Escapes  personal  in- 
jury, but  not  pecuniarj-^  loss  ;  ap- 
peals to  lyOrd  Baltimore,  251. 
Secretly  acquires  land  from  King 
Pathuen,  259. 

Cornwaleys,  Captain  :— Reminds 
the  first  I^egislature  that  they  are 
under  English  laws.  231.  Sends 
letter  of  complaint  to  I,ord  Balti- 
more in  reference  to  Act  of  Church 
I,iberties,  235.  A  wiser  counsellor 
than  Copley,  254. 


Fitzherbert,  a  worthy  successor  to 
Copley,  350-2.  Threatens  Thomas 
Gerrard,  351.  Suggests  malevo- 
lence of  witches  as  cause  of  bad 
weather,  352. 

Fleet,  Captain  Henry,  from  Vir- 
ginia, points  out  site  for  St.  Mary's 
City,  173-4. 


H 


Hatton,  Thomas,  a  Protestant,  ap- 
pointed vSecretary,  311. 

Harvey,  Sir  John,  Governor  of 
Virginia,  pays  a  state  visit  to  St. 
Mar>''s,  177. 

Havi^ley,  Jerome,  .sailed  to  Eng- 
land, 183. 

Histories  in  our  schools,  untrust- 
worthy. 17. 

Holy  Church  and  Roman  Church 
interchangeable  terms,  238. 


Indians  evangelized,  1S6-7. 
Ingle,  Richard. aids  Clayborne,  295. 
Instructions  of  L,ord  Proprietary, 

148-171. 


James  the  Second  commenced  pro- 
ceedings to  annul  the  Maryland 
Charter,  368. 

James,  Rev.  Richard,  an  English 
clergj'man    sent    by    Sir    George 


INDEX 


383 


Calvert  with  his  emigrants  to 
Newfoundland,  46.  Stationed  on 
Kent  Island,  47.  Died,  1658,  47. 
Widow,  dispossessed,  210. 
Jesuits,  sentiment  towards  their 
Protestant  countrj-men,  193-4. 
Proselytism,  instances  of,  216-19. 
The  first  to  introduce  slavery  into 
Maryland,  214.  Claim  the  power 
of  working  miracles,  219-222.  Per- 
secute Protestants,  222-224.  Re- 
fuse to  sit  in  first  legislative  a.s- 
senibly,  225-6.  Dispute  lyord  Bal- 
timore's title  to  lands  not  ceded 
to  him  by  the  Indians,  259.  Tri- 
umph over  Cecilius  Calvert,  269. 
Break  the  concordat,  271.  Panic- 
stricken  at  the  downfall  of  the 
proprietary  government,  296. 


lyEE,  Mary,  hanged  as  a  witch.  353. 

lyEWGER,  John,  Secretary  to  Mary- 
land, arrived  in  INIaryland  1637, 
260.  Not  a  Romanist  of  the  Cop- 
ley tj'pe.  260.  Opened  an  anti- 
Jesuit  campaign  in  the  House  of 
Assembly,  A.  D.  1640,  261. 


M 


Maryland,  historj'  opens  at  the 
Court  of  King  James,  21.  Charter 
of,  113.  Extent  of  territory 
granted,  114.  Terms  of  charter, 
119.  Charter  differs  from  Charter 
of  Avalon,  121-22.  Churches  to  be 
consecrated  according  to  ecclesi- 
astical laws  of  England,  122-27. 
Charter  revoked  by  William  the 
Third,  373. 

Match,  the  Spanish,  2.-30. 

Memorial  to  I,eonard  Calvert 
erected  by  Maryland  Govern- 
ment, 306-7. 


Newfounbland  visited  by  Norse- 
men under  Eric  the  Red,  41.  Re- 
discovered by  Cabot,  1497.  41. 
Claimed  for  Queen  Elizabeth  by 
Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert,  41.  Eng- 
land's first  colony,  42.  Parcelled 
out  by  trading  companies,  42. 
Visited  by  I,ord  Baltimore,  1627, 
61.  Abandoned  by  I^ord  Balti- 
more, 1629,  64. 


Oath  of  Supremacy  :— Refused  by 
Sir  George  Calvert,  81.  Meaning 
of,  82-3.  Fidelity  to  L,OTd  Balti- 
more, 334. 


Petition  to  Anglican  Hierarchy  for 
clergy  for  Marjdand  1686,  366. 

PocoMOKE,  battle  of,  183. 

Pott,  Governor  of  Virginia,  to  Privy 
Council  in  reference  to  Calvert's 
refusal  to  take  the  Oath  of  Su- 
premacy, 89-90, 

Providence:— The  headquarters  of 
the  new  emigrants,  330.  Battle  of, 
343- 

Protestant  Declaration  set  forth 
by  Governor  Stone  and  others,  332. 


Raleigh,  Sir  Walter,  the  founder 
of  the  English  Empire  in  Amer- 
ica, 21. 

Religious  service  at  the  landing 
of  the  adventurers,  167-8. 


Smith,  Captain  John,  Governor  of 
Virginia,  explored  Chesapeake 
Bay  in  1608,  91. 

Stourton,  Rev.  Erasmus,  chaplain 
of  John  Guy's  company  to  New- 
foundland, 46 ;  Complains  to  the 
King  that  mass  was  said  openly 
at  Ferryland,  69. 

Stone  :— A  Protestant  appointed 
Governor  in  place  of  Green,  a 
Roman  Catholic,  311.  Undertakes 
to  procure  five  hundred  immi- 
grants for  Maryland,  315.  Puts 
out  Protestant  Declaration  1650, 
332. 

St.  Mary's  :— Chosen  as  the  site  of 
the  Capital,  173.  Ceases  to  be  the 
Capital,  378. 


Toleration,  Religious,  unknown 
in  Sir  George  Calvert's  day,  9.  Ac- 
knowledged by  Cardinal  Vaugh- 
an,  74.  Acknowledged  by  Arch- 
bishop Ireland,  74. 


3^4 


INDEX. 


Vaughan,  a  Protestant  appointed 
Governor  of  Kent  Island,  311. 

Vestries  made  corporable  bodies 
to  receive  and  hold  property,  374. 

Virginia  :— Visited  by  Sir  George 
Calvert,  77.  Tendered  oath  of 
supremacy  to  Sir  George  Calvert, 
81.  Governor  Pott  vrrites  Privy 
Council  respecting  Sir  George 
Calvert's  refusal,  89. 


White,  Father :  his  two  accounts 
of  voyage  of  Ark  and  Dove,  151. 
Apostle  of  the  Indians,  196.  Sent 
to  England  for  trial,  299.  Re- 
leased from  Newgate,  300. 

Wilkinson,  Rev.  Mr.,  an  Anglican 
clergyman,  arrives  in  Maryland, 
1650,  316. 

William  III.  deprived  Charles 
Calvert  of  his  proprietaryship, 
873.  Appointed  Sir  I^ionel  Copley 
royal  governor,  373. 


ERRATA. 

On  page  113  read  "  commemorated  "  for  "  memorialized." 

On  page  201,  third  line,  del.  comma. 

On  page  239  read  "  Charta  "  for  "  Charter." 


Date  Due                   '    i 

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